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THE
ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES ©
OF
PHILADELPHIA
FOUNDED 1812
EXCHANGE
nh
As
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Mi
y
Digitized by the Internet Archive
In 2014
https://archive.org/details/reporttransa61 9091912guer
TRANSACTIONS
OF THE
GUERNSEY
SOGIETY OF NATURAL SUIENGE
LOCAL RESEARCH.
—_ 0 -
VOLUME VI.—1909-1912.
Guernsey :
BICHARD’S PRINTING AND PUBLISHING COMPANY, LTD.,
BORDAGE STREET.
*
iy
RINGO aX.
0o-—-———-
Alderney Flora, additions to
ye Marine Zoology of .
oo Mosses and Lichens, additional
43 Rainfall
Algues marines des iles Anglo-Normandes
Amias Andros and Edward his son .. te
Amphres Rocks (The Humps), vegetation of
Ancient beach at Vazon ..
», human remains found i in peat
Animal mimicry te
Anneville Manor House ..
Antiquities, notes on
Ascidians of Guernsey
Birds of Guernsey, additional species ..
on are they British? ..
Bon Repos Cove, study of rocks
Books and publications received
Botanical Reports, annual
Burhou Island, vegetation of
Canoe (ancient), found at Coutanchez..
Cave researches in Guernsey ‘
Cave-dwellings (Paleolithic) in J ersey
Channel Islands Peat beds
- and British Fauna
Chapelle Dom Hue, San of
Chapels, Manorial
Chausey Islands, flora of.
Cist or Dolmen at L’Islet
Clay, Glacial, deposit in Guernsey
Codes of signals in 1805 ..
Comparisons of Guernsey Dolmens
Concretions in clay (Lossmanchen)
Corbiére Promontory, geology of
Council of the Society
Crevichon, vegetation of..
Cuckoo Ray, a new Guernsey fish
Derrick, George Thomas, obituary...
De Vic, Sir Henry, history of (1597-1672)
Dolmen of new type at L’Islet .
Du Gueselin’s
connection with Guernsey
Earliest steamboat seen in Guernsey ..
Ecrehos Rocks, vegetation of
Elephant and his ancestors
Entomological Reports, annual..
Excursions of the Society
ey
# +
WN wo UD
i 183, 140, 325, 391
ie aie itd ls
.. 346
46
258
11
255
259
381
199
LJex ) ee
10, 22
304
en, LOO
13) 157, 164, 260, 352
eft 15, 356
45
55 281
vs 3, 143, 251, 337
ye 4
: : oe . = =—49
we 2. 255
ale 17, 167, 263, 357
300
ae ° eg oe
lv. INDEX.
Feudalism in Guernsey ..
Fig-tree disease ..
Fight for Privileges in 1309
Fish new to Guernsey
Fleas, three new species .
Flint Implements at Grandes Rocques —
Flora of Alderney, additions to
», Guernsey, o
,, Jethou, a
5. mark; ys
Folklore Report, annual. .
Forest and Peat beds of Channel Islands
Gall growing on acorns ..
Geological Reports, annual :
i Notes during Excursions ..
90 Study of Corbiére Point
Glacial clay deposit in Guernsey
Governors of Guernsey, Hereditary
Guernsey Ascidians
Ny Birds, additional species
ae Birds, are they British ?
is Feudalism in ,
a5 Hereditary Governors ‘
o History, some important events
o Insects, additional
és Lichens, additional
3 Mosses, ‘additional 2
5 Pezomachi (Ichneumonidee)
5 Rainfall :
sh Stories and superstitions
3 Sunshine
. Tunicata (Ascidians) .
Vole, a new mammal —
Guernseyman, an eminent (Sir Henry De Vic)
Guernseymen at Siege of Mont St. Michel
Guy Fawkes celebrations
Halley’s Comet as seen at Guernsey
Hepatice, Mosses and Lichens, notes on
Hereditary Governors of Guernsey
Herm rainfall
Hippocampus (Sea Horse) at Bordeaux Harbour
History of Guernsey in middle ages
Homo Breladensis (Paleolithic man) in J ersey
Houmet Benest, vegetation of . as oe
5s Homtolle, vegetation of
% Paradis, vegetation of..
Ice-mother of the Great Lakes.. :
Ichneumonide (Pezomachi) of Guernsey
Insects of Guernsey, additional ;
ae Jersey, additional
8 Sark, additional
Invasion of Guernsey in 1295
or in 1356
of Yvain de Galles sus 55
Islets and Rocks, vegetation of bi me
Jersey Insects, additional oe : sit
», Mosses and Lichens ie oy se
», Prehistoric researches in ot fe
11
ais
18, 167, 263, 307
: 16, 88
122. 227, 314, 391, 415
9
oie ; 129, 235, 320, 421
‘ 199
"" 18, 263, 357
INDEX.
Kiln, prehistoric, at Hougue Noirmont
Lee, Rev. G. E., obituary es ors Pi
Lepidoptera new to Guernsey .. oe
Lichens of Guernsey, additional :
,, Mosses and Hepatice, notes on
Life in a rockpool
Life history of the Sleeping Disease
Lihou Priory, historical and architectural notes
L’Islet, Cist or Dolmen at ;
Luff, William Ambridge, obituar y
Mammal, new to science (Guernsey Vole) ..
Manor of Anneville oe a s ae
Manorial chapels ..
Matter :
Marine Zoology of Alderney
fe Reports, annual
Members of the Society .
Meteor of February, 1909
Mimicry, animal .
y of Starling é
Mont St. Michel, Siege of a
Mosses, Hepaticee and Lichens, notes on
“5 and Lichens of Guernsey, additional
5a Bhenssis Sark, additional
Neolithic Man in Channel Islands a m
Obituary notice of G. E. Lee ..
iy ie W.A. Luff.
G. T. Derrick
Ornithological Reports, annual..
Paleolithic cave-dwellings in Jersey
man in Jersey
Pezomachi (Ichneumonide) of Guernsey
Plan of the Priory of Lihou ome
Plant associations
Plat Houmet (Herm), vegetation (0) a
Potter’s Kiln, ancient, discovered at the Vale
Prehistoric researches in J ersey ‘
Research Fund balance sheet
Privileges of Channel Islanders
Quicksilver in virgin soil
Rainfall of Alderney
ss Guernsey
a Herm .,
Sark
Rambles in Sark ..
Reports: Annual General
Treasurer’s
Botanical
Entomological
Folklore es
Geological are
Marine Zoology
Ornithological ab So oe
Reptiles, some great extinct .. oe “6
Rock features at the Corbiére .. ote oe
Vv.
Page
348, 381
co aoe
167, 357
es 16
88
156
8
. 080
9, 401
147, 152
21, 173, 268, 362
4, 144, 252, 338
10
.. 183, 240, 325, 391
122, 227, 314, 391, 415
los
LBS 240, 325, 391
: 188
12, 160, 259, 350
14, 166, 262, 355
: 15, 3560
17, 167, 263, 357
Bes 264. 359
20, 168, 267, 361
21, 173, 268, 362
Ry 22, 169, 270, 363
ae an 156
, Be ve 6231
e
Vi. INDEX.
Rocks of Guernsey, notes on .. “¢
Rue Frairie Manor *
Sark, new fern
new flowering plant
Hepatice, additional Se
Insects, additional list of..
Lichens, additional
Mosses, additional..
», Rambles in.
» Rainfall ‘
Seaweeds, additional
wild flowers of
Saumarez Manor ..
Sea Anemones, winter states oe
Seal seen in Sark . :
Shells, semi-fossil, found i in Guernsey |
Siege of Mont St. Michel, Guernseymen at "i
Sleeping Disease, Life history 0 of
Soirées of the Society
Solar Spectrum
Some great extinct Reptiles
St. Martin’s stone idol
Starling’s mimicry :
Statue-menhirs of Guernsey
Steamboat, earliest arrival in 1823
Submerged Peat and Forest beds
Subterranean chamber at Mont Cuet .
Sunshine of Guernsey
Superficial Deposits
Treasurer’s Balance Sheet
Tunicata (Ascidians) of Guernsey
Two-handled (ancient) vase
Types of Heavenly bodies
Van Heurck’s Flore des Algues Marines
Vegetation of Small Islets a
- Burhou
i Chapelle Dom Hue
0 Chausey Islands .
is Crevichon
5 Ecrehos Rocks
5 Galeux
5 Houmet Benest. .
c A Homtolle
sls sh Paradis...
o Longue Pierre
Plat Houmet
Vole, new Guernsey species
Warren or Garenne d’ Anneville
Whales and Sharks, visits of
Wild Flowers of Sark...
Wist of the Weird (Aikman) ..
Wryneck’s call imitated by starling
7, 155, 255, 345
Jai ae
156
181
276
177
9
25
259
|! 199, 235, 320, 421
285, 376
14, 166, 262, 355
oo, GUERNSEY
OCIETY oF A ATURAL SCIENCE
LOCAL RESEARCH.
REPORT AND TRANSACTIONS
: 1909.
SOSSOSSS COS SHESSSOSSCSSOOSCOOOOOOSOE
—6 Guernsey :
ICHARD’S PRINTING AND PUBLISHING COMPANY, LTD.,
; ee BORDAGE STREET. . :
EE I I IS IO ID
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:
GUERNSEY
SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCE
AND
LOCAL RESEARCH.
+ 1) —_—--
REPORT AND TRANSAUHIONS.
1909.
Gareriisey :
BICHARD’S PRINTING AND PUBLISHING COMPANY, LTD.
BORDAGE STREET.
COUNCIb FOR THE YEAR 1910.
Ra a aE a I tI I Dm gE
PRESIDENT:
WILLIAM CAREY, Esq., Bailiff of Guernsey.
VICE-PRESIDENTS:
Mr. BE. D. MARQUAND, A.L.S.
Mr. A. COLLENETTEH, F.C.S.
Mr. G. T. DERRICK.
Mr. W. A. LUFF, F.ES.
Mr. W. SHARP.
Dr. J. AIKMAN, M.D., C.M., L.R.C.S.
Rev. W. C. PENNEY, M.A., Principal of Elizabeth College.
Rev. G. BE. LEHR, M.A., F.S.A.. Rector of St. Peter-Port.
Hon. SECRETARY! HON. TREASURER:
Mr. G. T. DERRICK. Mr. W. A. LUFF, F.ES.
COMMITTEE:
Mr. C. G. DE LA MARE.
Mr. J. L. PITTS, F.S.A. (Normandy).
Mr. F. L. TANNER, L.D.S., F.R.C.S.
LIEUTENANT-COLONEL T. W. M. DE GUERIN.
Miss A. L. MELLISH, M.A.
Mr. B. T. ROWSWELL.
LIST OF MEMBERS (909).
Aikman, Dr., M.D., C.M., L.R.C.S. Queen’s Road.
Aikman, Mrs.) 940-03. 5.2) ee eee Queena heads
Aikman, Miss |... i. %. «. | 4. Quleen’s Road:
Allés, Mr. G. F. 1s ae ae, te MGothie’ Cottage, St. Marth:
Ashburne, Miss R. ie . Granville House.
Auld, Maj.-Gen. R., C. B., Lieut. -
Governor of Gulcmneey .. «. Saumarez Park.
Benson, Dr., M.D., C.M., F.R.C:S :
Hain puTsH Pe oe Car tee ehumacer Place.
Bichard, Mr. Mis. =. |. =. Verendes:
Bishop, Mr. Julius, Jurat of the
Royal Court.. .. . Grange.
Bishop, Dr. Henry Depart! M. i,
M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P. .. .. .. St. Monica, Vale Road, St. Sampson’¢:
Bisson, Mr. T. we Gs Sie oe. os ne Meurelst: Walle:
Blampied, Mr.C.” ..... .. '.. dda Posse,’ St, Marim’s
Blieg, Miss Blo. Sikes). orc) oe Kine’ schoad.:
Bostock, Miss 42. a. 7 .e OMith, Street,
Brown, Miss Mary, B.A. .. «+ Ladies’ College.
Buller, Dr. .. ..,.. <<... .. Carlson Crescent, Southamppan:
@arey, Mite Kae. a a. .. .. Summerland, Mount Durand.
Carey, Mari dod.) FR. G. S. ian. CONDO:
Carey, Miss B..). Gapi.. .. «.. Cambridge Park Road,
Carey, Mr. T. W. Se re . Somerset Place, Queen’s Road.
Carey, Mr. William, Bailiff of Gist
BCY.c 4 ou Siisvss fev. cope Ge meQQUueen s7hond:
Carré, Miss Bae decid Meer ates, pe een e Grove:
Chalmers, Mr. A.L... .. .. .. Corbiére, St. Pierre-du-Bois.
Collenette, Mr. A., F.C.S.. .. =~... Fort Road.
Collings, Colonel A. 2.6... Grange:
Collings, Missi. Baia ts. See). Chikton:
Cole Miss /R. 4.) ie ee eee Camuchens:
Corbin, Dr. E. K., M-R.C.S: .. |... Saumarez Street.
Corbin, Miss itis). .. “s2 =. Stanleysioad:
Cox, Miss Mi ue) aa! 4h Na OO ordierE Eni,
Cromartie, Mr. D. B. dole 4) he te NOEQUETLES.
Cumber, Mr. Joseph... .. .. Fountain Street.
De Guérin, Lieut.-Col. T. W. M. .. Le Mont Durand, Mount Row.
De Guérin, MissC. M. .. .. .. Le Mont Durand, Mount Row.
De Jersey, Colonel Grant... .. .. Grange Lodge.
LIST OF MEMBERS.
Meta Ware, Mr.C.G. .. .. .«. Crottes.
Weer, Mr. G. TT... < .. .. °.. King’s Road.
De Saumarez, Lord .. .. .. .. Grosvenor Square, London, W.
Durand, ell Cl: wee te Granece Valle.
Balta, Mr. Ao... .. ..» Les Hauteurs, Vale.
Fleure, Dr. Herbert a D. aes, . .. University College, Aberystwyth.
Foote, Advocate W. H .. se ee 6, New Street.
Poster, Miss F.A. .. . Granville House.
Guilbert, Mr. T. J., State ee Rohais.
Guille, MissS. .. .. .. .. .. 4, De Beauvoir Terrace.
itarvey,-General,.. .. ../... .. Oakleigh, Mount. Durand,
Henry, Me-S. M. ..° .. .. ..)Mount.Row.
ewan, Mia. We 2... ©. 2 Nosse Landry.
Hocart, Mr. J. S. ie feist) davlbes, Miclles,; Viale:
irish, Mos John W.B:. .. ..* .. Elm Grove.
seremic, Mri A.J, <<. 0)...» +. .Hubits.
Jessup, Mr.JA.C. .. .. °.. .«. Montville, Hauteville.
eco yery Ny Hit te ee LE ae 3 <f
Kelson, Mrs. oh .. Doyle Road.
Lee, Rev. G. E., M. ne i, S. ro, .. George Place, Union Street.
Le Cocq, Mr. Bore: ie an 1) WLLtom Wodee.
Le Cocq, Captain... . Yandilla, Choisi.
Le Cocq, General Hubert, naee J urat
of the Royal Court .. .. .. Clifton, Guernsey.
iteebehyre, Mr Bo. G... .. .. Bengeo Lodge, Hertford.
he Feuvre, Miss C. .. .. . 3, Brock Terrace, Grange Road.
Le Mottée, Colonel G eo. suet of
the Royal Court... .. .. .. Hauteville.
Lowe, Rev. F. E., M. re de ES .. St. Stephen’s Vicarage.
uit, Mr. W. A., YP. EiSis wa. oo. LarChaumiere, Brock Road.
Macleane, Mr. E. daa Ce nee La Bigoterie.
Mainguy, General F. B., Jurat of
the Royal Court... .. .. .... Les Rocquettes.
Marquand, Mr. E. D., me iy a .. Knyghtwood, St. Martin’s.
Marquand, Mr. H. E. Sete . Victoria Terrace.
Mauger, Mr. H. K., H.M. suey King’s Road.
Mellish, Miss A. ity M.A. -. .. Ladies’ College.
Mesny, Rev. P:S., M.A.... .. .. Cateél Rectory.
RigomeMISscAG 1h. 4. .6. »«, King’s Road.
Wattels irs As Mio. 03° as. / «. 13, George Road.
Nicolle; tir. Hr. «4, we -- 2, Norfolk Terrace, Jersey:
ACME tls se set eee oes Arcade,
enrold, Reva. B. 0...) 4. . 0 Grange:
irenney, Rev. W.C., MA. .. .. Hlizabeth College.
Pitts, Mr. J. L., F.S.A. (Normandy) Canichers.
Pau. Wire IN WW. 4.0)... Mount Row.
Randell, Miss Clare .. .. .. .. Grove End, Doyle Road.
mopwliard, Mri. NM...) .. .: =. Lua Piette.
Or
6 LIST OF MEMBERS.
Robinson, Dr. E. L., M.R.C.S.,
L.R.C.P. 18 ee Bee ee Melrose; (Gravees:
Rowswell, Mr. B. T... .. .. .. Les Blanches, St. Martin’s.
Semple, Dr. Macphun .. .. .. Haton Place.
Sharp, Mr. W..04. 00's) (su, Weel hen avocguertes:
Sinel, Mr. Joseph .. .. .. «. 12, Royal Crescent, Jersey:
Spencer, Mr. R.°P. 7... 0.4) ie rock woud.
Standen, Miss I... %..7. '..)/)22 38; Doyle. Merrace:
Tanner, Mr. F. L., L.D.S., F.R.C.S. Vauvert House.
Tanner, Mrs. bie! Gow) he) iit hee eV aViert Elomses
Terry, Rev. G,, B.A... .. .. .. Montville, St. Martin’s:
Tourtel, Rev. R. H., M.A., B.D.,
F.S.A. (Normandy) .. .. .. Torteval Rectory.
Végeais, Miss .. .. Hula. rock oad:
Wild, Dr. H.S., M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P. Gravées.
Woollcombe, Dr. Robert Lloyd, M.A.,
LL.D., F.R.G.S., M.R.I.A. .. 14, Waterloo Road, Dublin,
Wyeth, Rev. F. J.S., M.A. .. .. Lisle Terrace, Gravées.
Yates, Colonel, R.A... .. .. «. De Beauvoir.
TRANSACTIONS OF THE SOCIETY.
SSS
THE Sixth Annual Soirée of the Society was held in the
Guille-Allés Lecture Hall on the 9th of February, 1909.
Following the course adopted at all these popular and much-
appreciated entertainments, a series of short lectures were
delivered, illustrated by means of the Electric Lantern,
interspersed with songs and musical selections admirably ren-
dered by several ladies and gentlemen to whom the Society is
indebted for this kindly help. For the musical portion of the
programme grateful acknowledgments are due to Miss Shaw,
Miss Edmonds, Mr. H. F. M. Morres, and the members of the
Elizabeth College choir. The thanks of the Society are also
due to Mr. F. Li. Tanner who so successfully carried out the
duties of organising director of the evening’s entertainment.
The Bailiff of Guernsey, Mr. William Carey, as Presi-
dent of the Society, said it gave him the greatest pleasure to
be present, because these soirées of the Society always proved
both entertaining and instructive. He wished to thank those
who had come forward to help them that evening, and also
those who had come to listen. The Society was doing excel-
lent work and deserved every support. It was placing on
record for future students a vast amount of useful information
in all departments of natural science and archeology, matters
of entirely local interest, which would otherwise have been
quite unrecognised and forgotten. But the publication of a
volume of Z'ransuctions each year was a heavy drain upon
their resources, and so he would like to see the roll of
members largely increased. If those who were present would
induce their friends to join, the Society would be able to do
even more than in the past.
The first Lecture, by Mr. W. Sharp, Principal of the
Intermediate School, was entitled “ A bit of very ancient
Guernsey History.” As suggested by the title the subject
dealt with was the traces of the early habitation of this
island by Neolithic man. One of the most remarkable
of ancient monuments was to be seen to-day on the top of
the hill on Lancresse common. Its preservation was due to
the fact that it was only discovered in comparatively recent
times, because a large number of others which once existed
had been destroyed. The lecturer described these Dolmens
8 MEETINGS.
and what they were erected for, so far as we can gather from
the remains found in them. In Guernsey a good deal of
ancient pottery has been found, as well as stone implements
which show by the degree of wear and tear they have under- .
gone that they have done real work. It was very interesting
to compare the dolmens found in Guernsey with those of
Brittany and Cornwall, and other places. |
The second lecture, by Mr. E. Scott, B.Sc., dealt with
the subject of “The Solar Spectrum.” From the earliest
times speculation had been rife as to the composition of
the heavenly bodies, and only in the 19th century had
the spectroscope settled the question. White light, that
is sunlight, is split up by the prism into coloured bands
called the spectrum. Gaseous hot bodies give spectra of
colour on a dark background. A dark line across a
bright spectrum indicates that white light has passed
through a certain vapour. Comparison of this line with
the spectra of known vapours shows the substance which
has produced it. The sun is surrounded by a gaseous
envelope or chromosphere, and the dark lines in the sun’s
spectrum show the vapours in this chromosphere—and conse-
quently what substances are found in the sun—and in the
same way with various other heavenly bodies.
The third Lecture, by Dr. Aikman, was entitled “A
fragment of Lilliputian biography.” The lecturer briefly
sketched the life-history of the minute parasite which
produces the deadly sleeping sickness, the terror of Central
Africa. This disease originally develops in the blood of
crocodiles, whence through the agency of the Tsetse Fly
it is transferred to the blood of domesticated animals, in
which sooner or later it causes death. The disease is more
prevalent among negroes than white men, but we have
the sad instance of Lieut. Tulloch, of the Army Medical
Corps, who was infected at Uganda, and succumbed to sleep-
ing sickness after his return to England. That the disease
may be spread has been proved by experiments, but it has
also been ascertained that some negroes may be infected with-
out afterwards developing the disease. Several months or
even a year or two may elapse before the symptoms are
manifest, and it seems the disease does not develop until the
parasite has gained access to the fluid which surrounds the
brain and spinal cord.
The evening’s entertainment, which was very enjoyable,
attracted a large and appreciative audience, and the sum of
£7 7s. 6d. was realised by the sale of tickets.
MEETINGS. 9
Monthly Meeting held on March 17th, 1909, Mr. Frank Carey
in the chair.
Mr. H. BE. Marquand, Editor of the Star, read a very
interesting paper consisting mainly of old Guernsey stories
and superstitions. The lecturer gave an account of the arrival
of the first steamboat in Guernsey, the Medina, from South-
ampton, in June, 1823, and her subsequent voyage to Jersey,
where the inhabitants, seeing smoke issuing from the funnel,
thought she was on fire. “An old woodcut of this steam-
packet, and also one of the last of the sailing mail packets,
were exhibited. Several amusing tales of ohosts and witch-
craft followed, including the account of a certain “ treasure
trove” discovered at the Vale, the legend of “ La Rocque
Balan,” a singular “ death warning,” and several other divert-
ing episodes belonging to “le bouan viar tems.”
ee ee
Monthly Meeting held on April 21st, 1909, Mr. F. Le. Tanner,
EDS 4. the chair.
Ir. G. Derrick, Hon. Secretary of the Society, read
notes relating to the series of lectures recently delivered at
the Ladies’ College by members of the Society, all the sub-
jects relating to these islands. He next read a paper on a
supposed Dolmen stone discovered some years ago at L’Islet.
Particulars were given of its present size and appearance,
and it was suggested that it should be scientifically examined
and reported on by members of this Society.
Mr. B. T. Rowswell read a paper on the great meteor as
observed here, and Mr. Collenette added some remarks on the
subject. Mr. Rowswell’s paper is printed in the current
number of the Transactions.
The Hon. Secretary exhibited a cast prepared by Mr. J.
Sinel of the Cuckoo Ray recently captured off this coast by
Mr. C. Ferguson. It is the first occurrence of this fish in
Guernsey waters.
Monthly Meeting held on October 20th, 1909, Licut.-Colonel
T. W. De Guérin in the chair.
Mr. R. P. Spencer was unanimously elected a member of
the Society.
The chairman exhibited a flint knife and three arrow-
heads found by him on the small islets near Grandes Rocques,
Also a small flint scraper found in his garden.
10 MEETINGS.
Mr. H. KE. Marquand exhibited a quantity of quicksilver
found two feet below the surface in virgin soil in Park Street.
Mr. Collenette said quicksilver did not occur in this region,
nor was it found in its liquid condition. The present find was
probably the contents of a jar which had been broken and the
metal had percolated into the soil, where it might well remain
for a very long period.
Mr. W. A. Luff, F.E.S., exhibited three species of Fleas
new to Guernsey found on the new Field Vole (Microtus
sarnius). One species was remarkably large, and usually
attacked Voles and Moles.
A paper on the new Guernsey Vole and its habits, from
the pen of Mr. R. H. Bunting, of the British Museum, was
read and will be found in the following pages of these Trans-
actions.
Mr. Derrick read a paper (printed further on) on the
Peat beds of the Channel Islands, written by Mr. J. Sinel, of
Jersey. The chairman thought that if the sea was at one
time 200 or 300 miles further away than it is now, as suggested
in Mr. Sinel’s paper, it was difficult to understand how the
limpet shells found in the cromlechs had got there.
Mr. Ik. D. Marquand, A.L.S., read a paper on “ The
Vegetation of Small Islets,” which is printed in the current
Transactions. The chairman regretted that the lateness of
the hour would not allow of discussion upon many points
raised in this interesting paper.
Monthly Meeting held on November 17th, 1909, Mr. William
Carey, President, in the chair.
Miss I. Standen was unanimously elected a member of
the Society. |
Mr. Eric Sharp exhibited a number of rare marine
animals lately found by him.
Mr. Derrick read notes on the occurrence of the Grey
Lag Goose in Guernsey and the Glossy Ibis in Sark; both
birds being additions to our fauna. Particulars will be found
in the Ornithological Report for the present year.
A note was read, taken from the Evening Press of
June 8, 1909, reporting that a seal was seen in Creux Harbour,
Sark, the previous week.
Col. I. W. De Guérin then read a paper on “ Feudalism
in Guernsey,” and another entitled “ A fight for our Privi-
leges,” both of which are printed in these Transactions.
MEETINGS. ll
The Twenty-seventh Annual Meeting of the Society was held on
December 15th, 1909, Lieut.-Colonel T. W. De Guérin in the
chair.
Mrs. Kelson exhibited a branch of Canadian Poplar from
eo: showing cottony fruit.
A. Luff exhibited specimens of a new Gall
es calicis) growing on acorns. It is not British, though
found on the Continent. Mr. Luff also read a paper on the
genus Pezomachus, and one on ‘ Additions to the Insects of
Sark,” and then Mr. F. L. Tanner read a paper by Mr. Eric
Sharp on the Marine Zoology of Alderney. All the above
papers are printed in the present Z’ransactions.
Mr. A. Collenette reported that the bones found at Vazon
were undoubtedly human. They consisted of portion of a
skull which unfortunately had been thrown away by the
workmen, and some fragments of thigh bones which he had
secured for the Museum. They were in the peat under the
sand, but in his opinion they belonged to a later date than the
other Guernsey peat bones, probably the same period as the
Alderney skulls.
The annual Sectional Reports, embodying the work of
the year in various branches, were read as follows :—
Botany, by Mr. E. D. Marquand.
Entomology, by Mr. W. A.. Luff.
Geology. by Mr. C. G. De La Mare.
Marine Zoology, by Mr. F. L. Tanner.
Ornithology, by Mr. E. D. Marquand.
The Hon. Secretary next read the Annual Report of the
Council, and the Hon. Treasurer presented his statement of
account showing a balance in hand of £15 11s. 2d,
Proceeding then to the election of officers, the Secretary
(Mr. G. T. Derrick) and the Treasurer (Mr. W. A. Luff)
were re-elected by acclamation, with many expressions of
thanks for their services; and as no new member was pro-
posed for the Committee the old Committee was re-elected en
bloc.
Monthly Meeting held on January 26th, 1910, Lieut.-Colonel
T. W. De Guérin in the chair.
Mr. A. Collenette, F.C.S., read his annual Report on
the Sunshine and Rainfall of the past year, and Mr. B.
Rowswell’s Weather Reports for Alderney and Sark. Both
papers are published in the current Transactions. A large
12 REPORTS.
series of comparative tables and diagrams, illustrating the
subject, were shown on the screen.
The Chairman announced that the Annual Soirée of the
Society would take place on the 8th of February.
Report of the Council.
The Council are pleased to put before the members the
record of most important and interesting work done during
the year 1909 in connection with subjects in which this Society
is concerned.
The Lukis Collection of objects of the utmost antiquarian
value, a large proportion of which were discovered during the
exploration of our local prehistoric monuments, has been
accepted by the States as a gift under the will of the late
Capt. F. Lukis. The States have also acquired the Lukis
Mansion in the Grange and have fitted it up as a Museum ;
so that this unique colletion of ancient relics is secured to
the Island for ever, and is open to inspection of students and
the public. Guernsey may well be proud of being numbered
among the few places which retain in their possession nearly
all the objects discovered in their megalithic monuments.
W hile this new Institution will be of great assistance to
students of local antiquities, it is well to point out that another
Institution, the Guille-Allés Museum, also contains a collec-
tion of objects of antiquarian interest, including many bronze
implements from Alderney ; in fact it is the only collection of
the bronze period found in the Channel Islands. This
Museum has been thoroughly re-arranged and_ classified
during the last few years, and is very rich in local Natural
History, especially Shells, Fishes and Birds.
In January it was reported that a “dug-out ” canoe had
been discovered at the Coutanchez, but as doubts have been
expressed as to its real character, it is desirable that further
excavations should be carried out in order to settle this point,
for the existence of a canoe at this spot would be most weighty
evidence in connection with the discussion of changes of ele-
vation in this district, and the relative ages of certain super-
ficial deposits.
From the Sectional Reports, as well as the papers read
at the monthly meetings, it will be seen that the general work
of the Society is being vigorously carried on, showing that
there is still scope for earnest research in every department.
The continued appreciation of the Society's work is shown by
the large attendance at the indoor meetings, and especially at
REPORTS. 1}
the Soirée on February 9, which was a decided success in
every way. The Council desire to return their best thanks
to all those who assisted on that occasion.
The number of members belonging to the Society is fairly
well maintained, and the finances are in a_ satisfactory
condition.
The Society is deeply indebted to the Council of the
Guille-Allés Library for the gratuitous use of a room in
which to hold their meetings, for the use of the IElectric
Lantern at the Soirée, and for permission to make use of the
Reference Library.
During the year the following books and _ publications
have been received in exchange for our Transactions. All
books are kept in the Society’s Library, which is at all times
accessible to members on application to the Secretary.
Philadelphia :—
Academy of Natural Science, Vol. 60, Parts IT.
and III. Vol. 61, Part I.
Washington :—
Library of Congress: Buildings and Grounds.
Smithsonian Institution : Annual Report, 1907 ;
do., 1908.
Lloyd’s Library: Botany, &c., Reproduction,
Series 7.
Boston :—
Society of Natural History: Fauna of New
England ; Lists of Pisces, Araneida and Pha-
langida. Vol. 34, Parts I., II., III., IV.
Brooklyn :—
Institute of Arts and Sciences: Fresh Water
Cyclops of Long Island.
Jersey :—
Societé Jersiaise: Journal de Jean Chevalier,
deme Fascicule; Bulletin 34; Actes des
Ktats, 1761 to 1770.
British Museum :—
General Guide.
Botany, History of Plant Classification.
Memorial of Linneus.
Great Game Animals.
Mammals not Ungulates.
Weapons of War and Chase.
14 REPORTS.
Guides to Anthropology, Elephants (recent and
fossil), Horse Family, Domesticated Animals,
Whales, Fishes and Insects.
Introduction to Study of Rocks.
Synopsis of British Basidiomycetes.
Horniman’s Museum :—
Annual Report, 1907.
Portici :—
Bulletin of the Zoological Laboratory, Vol. L1II.
Concarneau :—
Bulletin of the Zoological Laboratory.
Wisconsin :—
Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters: Vols. 3
for 1875-6; 4 for 1876-7; 5 for 1877-81; 6 for
1881-83; 7 for 1883-87; 8 for 1888-91; 9
(Parts I. and II.) for 1892-93 ; 10 for 1894-5 ;
16 (Part: I.),; Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4,5 ama) 6.
Abstract of the Treasurer’s Accounts
From 1st of January to 31st of December, 1909.
Dr. Cr.
HOR Wea 8 d
Balance of last year’s Expenses connected with
Necounten 2118 4 SOE seer teeeteeee 118 5
Proceeds of Soirée......... 7 7 6 | StarPublishingCompany 117 4
Copies of Transactions Cost of Transactions...... 38 15 2
Sold <hocAaees Ge ee cree. 0 6 6 | Collector collecting 50
Members’ Subscriptions.. 30 7 6 Subscriptions vee aee eee ees 018 9
Interest at Bank............ 010 6 | Donation to Caretaker... 015 0
Secretary's Expenses,
Postages of Tvransac-
tions, SCs ihc eee 0 8 G6
Balance in hand............ 15.11 2
£60 5 4 £60 5 4
Examined and found correct,
C. G. DE LA MARE,) 43,
H ho MAROUMND, So”
W. A. LUFF, Hon. Treasurer.
December 15th, 1909.
REPORTS. 15
Report of the Botanical Section.
There are this year some interesting notes, but nothing
very startling to report in this department of research.
The indigenous vegetation of the Sarnian Islands has now
been so thoroughly worked up, catalogued, and_ recorded,
from the highest flowering plants to the lowest microscopical
aloz, that one cannot expect any large increase to be made
to the collective lists. The work of the future should be
directed less towards the search for plants entirely new to
our area, and more towards ascertaining the exact range of
those already known to occur; because, as I have had occasion
to state on many occasions, the islands differ from each other
to a surprising degree.
Before dealing with matters of purely local interest,
I wish to say a few words about the irreparable loss
which science has sustained this year by the death of
an illustrious Belgian botanist, whose latest work,—an
exhaustive enumeration of the Seaweeds of the Channel
Islands, was published only last year. I refer to my lamented
friend Dr. Henri Van Heurck, Professor of Botany, and
Director of the Botanical Gardens at Antwerp. Dr. Van
Heurck, who died on the 19th of March last, at the age
of seventy, was one of the most distinguished of Huropean
microscopists. He had made a speciality of the Diatomaceex,
on which he was an acknowledged authority. His great
work, Traité des Diatemées, embellished with over 2,000
figures of recent and fossil species, with full descriptions
and references, is a monument of critical acumen and
laborious study, and it justly stands as a text book of the
highest merit.
But Dr. Van Heurck was also a keen algologist. He
devoted the last years of his life to the study of the
seaweeds of Jersey, and the result of his researches was
embodied in his Prodrome de la Flore des Algques Marines
des Iles Anglo-Normandes. It was my privilege to assist
him with voluminous notes and specimens collected by myself
during the previous fifteen years in Guernsey and Alderney,
thereby rendering Dr. Van Heurck’s book, as he gratefully
acknowledges in the preface, very much more comprehensive
and complete than it would otherwise have been. Altogether
nearly 500 seaweeds are recorded with their distribution
not only in the Channel Islands, but along the whole north-
western coast of France. In no other book will be found
such an instructive bird’s-eye view of the exceeding richness
and variety of the marine flora of our shores.
16 REPORTS.
As will be seen by the list which follows, additions have
been made during the past twelve months to the records of
no less than four of the Sarnian Islands, viz., Guernsey,
Alderney, Sark and Jethou. Mr. Derrick has discovered
an unrecorded fern in Sark, and another in Jethou.
Several additional mosses and hepatice have been found in
Guernsey, Alderney and Sark, by Mr. P. G. M. Rhodes, B.A.,
of Cambridge University, and among them there is one
species (Brachythecium velutinum) not previously detected in
the Channel Islands. Mr. Rhodes has also added four lichens
to the Guernsey list.
My own share of the work is confined to Sark, where
during a week’s visit in the spring I found a new flowering
plant, four new mosses, and an unrecorded seaweed. Sark
is not at all an ideal collecting-ground for a seaweed collector ;
it is far inferior, from the nature of the coast, to Herm
or Alderney. But the scanty list at present on record might
be considerably enlarged with very little trouble.
A paper was recently read before the Society on the
vegetation of some of the small islets on our coasts. Persons
who are interested in the subject of plant distribution will
find in it matter for some amount of attentive study and
comparison.
Two rare Guernsey plants have been found in new
stations that deserve notice. In May last the Rev. R. H.
Tourtel sent me a fresh specimen of the Star of Bethlehem
(Ornithogalum umbellatum) which had been found by Miss
Tourtel growing in small quantity in a field quite on the
edge of the Thielles cliffs. During the summer I noticed
several small patches of the Heath Bedstraw (Galium
saxatile) in flower on the cliffs above Saints Bay. This
is one of our most local plants, hitherto only known to
occur in two or three places at the extreme northern end
of L’Ancresse Common.
GUERNSEY.
Pottia viridifolia, Mitt. Roadside bank, Varclin, St. Martin’s (Rhodes).
Already recorded for Alderney.
Weisia verticillata, Brid. Under Fort George (Rhodes). Recorded for
Iderney.
Brachythecium velutinum, 2. § S. Roadside at St. Sampson’s (Rhodes).
New to the Sarnian Islands.
Collema melaenum, 4ch. Sea Wall, Fermain Bay (Rhodes).
Ramalina breviuseula, Ny/. f. gracilescens, Cromb. Hommet Benest
(Rhodes).
Parmelia prolixa, Ny7. Under Doyle’s Pillar, and at Grandes Rocques
(Rhodes).
Lecanora lobulata, Somm. Hommet Benest (Rhodes).
REPORTS. 17
ALDERNEY.
Grimmia subsquarrosa, Wils. La Tchue (Rhodes).
SARK.
Alisma ranunculoides, Z. Grows sparingly in a small pool on Eperquerie
Common (Marquand).
Blechnum boreale, Sw. Dixcart Valley, found by Mr. Cumber and
subsequently by Mr. Derrick.
Polytrichum nanum, Weck. Banks at Dixcart (Marquand).
Funaria ericetorum, Dix. Banks, Little Dixcart, also on the edge of
a small pool on Eperquerie Common (Marquand).
Brachythecium albicans, B. § S. On the ground, Dixcart Common
(Marquand).
Eurhynehium pumilum, Schp. Dixcart Valley (Marquand).
Fossombronia angulosa, Raddi. Near Point Chateau (Rhodes).
Lejeunia cavifolia, 22. Interior of Sark (Rhodes).
Lecanora erythrella, Vy/. Point Chateau (Rhodes).
Catenella Opuntia, Grev. Small cave in Creux Harbour (Marquand).
JETHOU.
Asplenium Adiantum-nigrum, Z. Not hitherto noted for the main
island of Jethou (Derrick).
E. D. Marquanp, Sec. Bot. Sect.
Report of the Entomological Section.
The additions made to the lists of the Insect Fauna of
Guernsey and Sark have been very numerous this year. Mr.
KE. D. Marquand has devoted much time to the collection of
two or three special orders, and has been most successful.
A list of twenty-one species of Pezomachus, a genus of
the Ichneumonidae, will appear in the current Transactions.
Mr. Marquand paid a visit to Sark from April 20th to
27th, and added 82 species to the list of insects recorded for
that island in our Transactions for 1906. This additional
list will appear further on.
Among the Lepidoptera the Rev. F. HE. Lowe reports the
capture by his nephew, Mr. Stephen Fisher, of three speci-
mens of the beautiful non-British Polyphenis sericina on rocks
on the south coast of the island on August 11th, 12th and
13th. Mr. Lowe captured specimens of both broods of
Larentia viretata at rest in his garden on May 18th and 22nd
and on September 11th.
Catocala Nupta, the Red Underwing Moth, came to
sugar at the end of August and beginning of September.
Mania Maura has been excessively abundant at sugar; Mr.
Lowe counted nineteen specimens in one evening. Hybernia
B
18 REPORTS.
defoliaria was taken at light on November 8th. This is the
second Guernsey example which has been met with. Mr.
Lowe took it once before, as recorded in the Transactions
twenty years ago. ‘T'wo species of Micro-Lepidoptera, new to
our list, have also been captured by Mr. Lowe; they are
Yponomeuta cognatellus, Hb., on August 26th, and Depressaria
subpropinguella, Stt., on August 30th.
Sphinx convolvuli, usually so abundant, has again been
scarce. I only know of the capture of one specimen, which
was taken at the top of George Road. Mr. E. D. Marquand
has very industriously collected the Guernsey Hemiptera-
Heteroptera and Hemiptera-Homoptera during the present
year, and has added twenty-one species to the list. <A large
and very beautiful fly was captured on a skylight window in
my workshop in the Bordage. It has been identified by the
Rev. E. N. Bloomfield, F.E.S., as Volucella Zonaria, Botha,
a species which does not occur in Great Britain. Three
species of Fleas, taken on the new Guernsey Vole (Microtus
sarnius) by Mr. R. H. Bunting, of the British Museum, and
kindly given by him to Mr. Marquand, were sent to the Hon.
Charles Rothschild, at the Tring Museum, for identification.
They have been returned as Hystrichopsyalla talpe, Curt.
(the Mole Flea), Ctenophthalum pentacanthus, Roths., and C.
agyrtes, Hellier.
Specimens of Cynips calicis, Bury, were gathered in
Guernsey this season. This gall is known on the Continent
as the “ Knopper Gall.” It is described and figured in Dr.
Edward T. Connold’s recent work on British Oak Galls, from
Jersey specimens. It has not hitherto been discovered in
Great Britain.
Mr. E. A. Butler, B.A., B.Sc., has kindly given me the
names of three species of Coleoptera and one Hemipteron cap-
tured by himself in Jersey. These have not before been
recorded for that island.
I have much pleasure in acknowledging the kind assist-
ance rendered in identifying many of the species by Mr.
Edward A. Butler, B.A., B.Sc., F.E.S.; Mr. Edward Saunders,
F.R.S., F.E.S8., &c.; Mr. G. C. Champion, F.Z.8., &c.; Rev.
E. N. Bloomfield, M.A., F.E.8.; Hon. Charles Rothschild,
M.A., F.L.S.; and Mr. Claude Morley, F.E.S.
ADDITIONS TO THE GUERNSEY LIST.
LEPIDOPTERA.
Yponomeuta cognatellus, Hd. Several specimens taken by the Rev.
F. EK. Lowe.
Depressaria subpropinquella, Sz. One, captured by Rev. F. E. Lowe.
REPORTS. 19
HYMENOPTERA.
Ponera econtracta, Latr. Three specimens of this very rare British ant
were found by Mr. Marquand and his son under a stone in Moulin Huet
Valley in the spring. No others were seen again.
Cremnodes atricapillus, Grav. This Ichneumon fly was taken at Saints
Bay on the 8th and 24th of June.
Cynips ealicis, Burg. Specimens of this curious gall were gathered this
season by Miss Marquand in the Norgiots Valley at St. Andrew’s, and
also at Mount Durand. It occurs principally on Quercus pedunculata, but
also on Q. sessiliflora and makes its appearance in May and June. It
does not occur in Great Britain, but specimens from Jersey are figured
in Dr. E. Connold’s recent work on British oak galls.
HEMIPTERA-HETEROPTERA.
Stygnus fuligineus. May 14th, Saints Bay. May 6th, Jerbourg.
Peritrechus gracilicornis, Put. Corbiére, May 7th.
P. puneticeps, Zhoms. Corbiére, May 7th. Jerbourg, May 6th.
Seolopostethus neglectus, HZdw. Jerbourg, 6th May. July, at Icart
Point.
Nabis ferus, Zin. St. Andrew’s, May 11th.
N. dorsalis, D. ¢ 8S. Petit Bot, May 5th.
Salda littoralis, Zin. On banks of a brackish pool at Pulias, Vale, on
August oth.
Monalocoris filicis, Zin. May 2nd at Petit Bo.
Phytocoris ulmi, Zin. July 30th, Moulin Huet.
Atractotomus mali, Mey. July 24th, Saints Bay.
Oneognathus binotatus, Fab. Several specimens at Icart, July 2nd.
One at Petit Bo on August 27th.
Lygus pabulinus, Zin. 27th August, Fermain Bay.
L. Kalmii, Zin. July 30th, Moulin Huet.
HEMIPTERA-HOMOPTERA.
Dicranotropsis hamata, Boh. June 3rd, Saints Bay.
me Upsls rubi, Boh. August 25th, Petit Bo. 27th August, Fermain
ay.
Athysanus plebejus, Fall. July 5th, Fermain Bay.
A. lineolatus, Bruile. August 28th, Grande Mare, Vazon.
Liburnia diffieilis, Zdw. 26th June, Moulin Huet.
L. fairmarei, Perris. August 24th, Saints Bay.
Eupteryx urtics, F. June 21st, Saints Bay.
E. atropunctatus, Goege. June 16th, Icart.
DIPTERA.
Hysterichopsyalla talpsze, Curt. Taken by Mr. R. H. Bunting on the
new Guernsey Vole (Microtus sarnius). It is called the Mole Flea and
is of very large size.
Ctenophthalum pentacanthus, Rotis. Taken on the Guernsey Vole
(Microtus sarnius).
C. agyrtes, Hellicr. Found on the Guernsey Vole (Microtus sarnius).
Volucella Zonaria, Poda. One specimen captured on a skylight window
in the Bordage. Itis alarge and very beautiful fly, not found in Great
Britain.
20 REPORTS.
ADDITIONS TO THE JERSEY LIST.
COLEOPTERA.
Atemeles emarginatus, Grav. Taken by Mr. E. A. Butler, at Bouley
Bay.
Cardiophorus asellus, Zv. Taken by Mr. E. A. Butler at Gorey.
Mierozoum tibiale, #. Taken by Mr. E. A. Butler at Gorey.
HEMIPTERA.
Cydrus flavicornis. Taken at Gorey by Mr. E. A. Butler.
W. A. Lurr, F.E.S., Sec., Ent. Sect.
Report of the Geological Section.
1.—Coutanchez Road, St. Peter-Port.
In the early part of the year (January) it was reported
that a canoe (commonly called a dug-out) had been cut
through in excavating a boiler pit on Mr. Fletcher’s property
(“ Selborne”). Some members of the Natural Science
Society went to examine the spot, but there was little to see,
the boiler pit having been completed and walled in with
concrete. The materials removed from the excavation were
seen, and some portions of the canoe were shown us. A
further excavation in the ground immediately adjoining
would have been desirable, but this was impracticable, owing
to the presence of buildings, and the treacherous nature of the
ground. We were informed the upper part of the canoe was
5 ft. 6in. under the surface. Under about a foot of soil was
found “ souale ” consisting of clay and sand irregularly mixed
and penetrated by rootlets as usual. This passed into almost
pure sand, in which deposit the canoe was found, but
neither end of this canoe was exposed, and the wood was so
sodden it was impossible to save any large pieces. The
locality is about 20 feet above present high water level
and half-a-mile inland. An ancient beach exists at the
Roussaillerie on the margin of the same depression, so that
there can be no doubt as to the marine origin of the deposit.
When it was laid down, the land was evidently at a lower
level than at present, and this depression must have taken
place subsequently to the elevation above (and probably
considerably above) the present level when the forests now
submerged flourished. The raised beaches on the south side
of the island are evidently ancient, and are overlaid by
the loam and clay with angular pieces of stone commonly
called head, but at Capelles and Noirmont, head is found under
an ancient beach, so that there may have been two depressions,
REPORTS. Dy |
separated by a considerable interval of time, the last one being
probably within the human period. The souale would seem
to be a mixture of clay washed down from the land, with
the sand left by the retreating sea.
2.—Mansell Street, St. Peter-Port.
In excavating behind Mr. Wallis’s shop, the rock was
found to be diorite with intrusive veins of pegmatite. The
diorite contained numerous crystals of orthoclase felspar,
probably introduced by the intrusive veins.
3.—Vazon Bay.
In excavating the foundations of the new sea-wall at the
Tower enclosure, the section exposed consisted of sand
and gravel underlaid by a foot of peat, below which was found
bluish sandy clay with rootlets ; being a variety of “ souale.”
This was only penetrated to a foot in depth. The peat layer
was about 2 feet above mean sea level. The roots of a tree
were found in the peat. In the sand above the peat some
human bones were found which have been deposited in the
Guille-Allés Museum. They presumably do not date back
to the Neolithic period, but more probably form part
of the remains of an individual belonging to the early centuries
of our era.
C. G. Dr La Marz, Sec. Geol. Sect.
Report of Section for Marine Zoology.
In my report last year I had to bemoan the paucity of
workers in this branch of our Society. There is no section
in which more remains to be done, or in which there are
more rewards in store for the systematic and painstaking
searcher. In spite of this and notwithstanding the exceptional
advantages which Guernsey and the neighbouring islands
possess, practically all the work has been done by one
member—Mr. HE. W. Sharp.
Is it because shore-hunting is supposed to be undignified,
or is it because the harmless enthusiast, who goes grovelling
among the rocks and pools, does so simply because he has
neither the energy to play golf, nor sufficient brains to play
bridge? And yet some men, whose names loom large on the
pages of science, have not thought this study beneath them.
As we wander along by the seashore and seek out and
contemplate the wonders and beauties of nature, we experience
the delightful emotions which the contemplation of unbounded
beauty and beneficence ever calls up in the cultured mind, and
22 REPORTS.
we begin to understand what Wordsworth meant when he
spoke of
“ Thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears.”
Let me then once again recommend the Marine Section more
particularly to the younger members of our Society.
My report then this year is almost entirely a record of
Mr. E. W. Sharp’s work, which I think does him the greatest
credit. In Guernsey Mr. Sharp has only one new “ find,”
Hermocea dendritica. a new sea-slug found at Cobo.
Last year I reported that I had found in Little Sark a
small colony of lovely little emerald green anemones which I
was, and still am, unable to get anyone to identify for me.
On visiting the pool, in which they were, this summer, to my
dismay I found them all gone, but upon searching the other
pools in the vicinity, I discovered a colony of about the same
size—about 20—only a few feet away in a pool in which I am
certain there were none last year. Now the interesting point
arises, did the colony found last year migrate ‘en masse ” to
their new quarters, which is hardly credible; or are these the
offspring of the old colony which has disappeared? If the
latter, it is remarkable that not a single specimen could be
discovered in any of the other pools around.
Alderney has this year been the field of most of Mr.
E. W. Sharp’s work, and his detailed report is printed further
on. This includes several rare species and two new finds :—
that exquisite little Anemone—Ballanophyllia regia and
Lucernaria Campanulata, both of which, though given in
“ Ansted” have not been otherwise reported.
Seeing that there is no record given in “ Ansted” as
to when or where many of the rarer species were found or by
whom, or by whom they were identified, I think it is a question
how far the lists given in that book should be accepted.
F. L. Tanner, Sec. Mar. Zool. Sect.
Report of the Ornithological Section.
It gives me great pleasure to be able this year to report
the occurrence of four birds which have not hitherto been
authentically included in the avifauna of the Sarnian Islands,
viz., the Jay, the Brown Owl, the Grey Lag Goose and
the Glossy Ibis. These are of course rare visitors, but ad-
ditions to our local list can only be expected among species
which from time to time stragele in our direction, or make a
brief stay in these islands during their annual migrations.
Including the four species now added, the total number of
REPORTS. 2
birds recorded for Guernsey and the smaller Sarnian Islands
amounts to 195 species, of which nineteen are additions to
those enumerated in Smith’s Birds of Guernsey. I have
again to thank Mr. B. Rowswell for kindly handing me
his carefully-kept notes on the movements of our summer
birds of passage.
Brown Owl. Mr. G. E. Kinnersly informs me that two winters ago he shot
in Guernsey a Brown or Wood Owl, and as the bird was only wounded
in the wing, he kept it alive for a couple of months. This is the only
known instance of the occurrence of this species in these islands.
Wheatear. I saw a solitary Wheatear on the cliffs at Icart on the 27th of
March, which is earlier than I have ever observed the bird in Guernsey.
On April 6 I noticed several on the Vale Coast near Fort Doyle.
Wheatears remained with us until October; the latest were noted by
Mr. Rowswell, who saw about a dozen at Rocquaine on the 11th, one at
the Forest on the 14th, two at Petit Port on the 22nd, and the last on the
24th of October in the same locality.
Chiffehaff. Heard as early as March 27th by Mr. Rowswell on the Fermain
Cliffs. During the first week in April I heard Chiffchaffs in various parts
of the island. Last heard by me on October 12, and by Mr. Rowswell
on the 14th, both at St. Martin’s.
Willow Wren. Less common than usual this year. First heard by me on
the 19th of April at Petit Bot.
Jay. The local patois name Jai applied in Guernsey to the Missel Thrush
has given rise to the statement that the Jay is found here ; but it does
not occur, and has never yet been authentically recorded. Mr. G. E.
Kinnersly lately told me that during the autumn of 1899 or 1900 he saw
a couple of Jays (which he has often shot in England) in the shrubbery
at the Vallon overlooking Moulin Huet. He had his gun with him
at the time, but he spared them on account of their rarity.
Wryneck. Later than usual to arrive this year. The first I heard on
April 8 at St. Peter’s, and Mr. Rowswell on the 10th at Les Blanches.
The familiar call was heard pretty frequently up to the middle of July,
Mr. Rowswell’s latest dates being the 16th and 21st of that month.
Cuckoo. Heard by several people in different parts of St. Martin’s on the
16th of April, and reported in the papers to have been heard in Alderney
a day earlier. Mr. Rowswell heard the bird singing every day during
July up to the 7th, and notes that on the 6th one was still in full song in
the Vallon trees, as it called ‘‘ cuckoo ’’ forty-nine times without a break.
Kingfisher. I regret to have to record that on the 13th of November
a specimen was exposed for sale in the market in a basketful of un-
fortunate blackbirds and thrushes. It seems incredible that anyone
could be so heartless as to shoot a Kingfisher simply to gratify a craving
for slaughter. It certainly is not the easiest of birds to kill on the wing,
but surely a gunner with a spark of feeling might select something less
beautiful to aim at.
Goatsuecker. I have only seen one this year. It was flying along in the
evening twilight near Les Meriennes on Sept. 27,—rather a late date for
this summer migrant.
Swift. Arrived earlier than usual. I saw the first one in Sark on April 24,
flying about near the Coupée; and Mr. Rowswell saw a couple circling
round near Morley Chapel on April 29. By May 5 they were quite
numerous here. Mr. Rowswell notes August 29 and Sept. 7 as his latest
dates; but I saw at Icart a pair of Swifts flying about as late as the
11th of September.
24 REPORTS.
Swallow. On the 6th of April I happened to be botanising on the exposed
islet of Houmet Homtolle, at the extreme northern corner of Guernsey,
and I was fortunate enough to observe three or four Swallows, one at a
time, arriving from across the sea and heading straight for the land.
There was a strong north-east wind blowing at the time, and the birds
flew with the wind. Later in the day I saw several more at the Vale.
On the following day I saw a few at the Forest, and on the 8th a
couple at Perelle. Mr. Derrick observed several Swallows in Sark on
April 8. Until the 19th of October these birds were numerous in
Guernsey ; afterwards only stragglers were seen up to the 24th when
apparently the last one departed. Mr. Rowswell says he has never
known Swallows disappear so completely at such an early date. On the
6th of November however, a fine sunny afternoon, my son and I watched
for some time a solitary swallow flying about in the neighbourhood of our
house at St. Martin’s.
House Martin. On April 6 I watched a House Martin arriving over the sea ’
at Fort Doyle from the north-east, and flying with the wind straight
inland, and later on I saw another (or perhaps the same bird) flitting
round a greenhouse at the Vale. Mr. Derrick noted House Martins in
Sark on April 12. Both Mr. Rowswell and I agree, from independent
observations, in fixing the 18th of October as the last date on which
Martins were numerous in Guernsey ; and neither of us saw any more
until November 4, when I watched for some time a party of seven flying
about together in Petit Bot Valley. Mr. Rowswell says that on Novem-
ber 13 several House Martins were seen by Mr. G. J. Tourtel, a reliable
observer, flying about Moulin Huet Bay.
Sand Martin. Not having seen any Sand Martins in Guernsey for several
years I was pleased to observe a single bird flying in the warm sunshine
on April 8th on the coast at Perelle Bay. It was accompanied by two or
three swallows. A saw a couple of others at the Corbiere on the 7th of
May, and again two on May 20 at the same place. I saw no more Sand
Martins afterwards.
Cornerake. Heard by Mr. R. P. Spencer at Grande Mare on May 9, and
by Mr. G. F. Alles in the field at the top of George Road on May 138.
Two days later my wife heard a corncrake in the same field. Mr. Rows-
well noted the bird three times during the year, on May 28 and 29, and
on June 25, the last near the old Grantez Mill, at St. Saviour’s. This
bird is certainly becoming more rare than it used to be; I have not
heard one in Guernsey for three years.
Glossy Ibis. This exceedingly rare and interesting visitor, a species belong-
ing to northern Africa, is a fine addition to the list of Sarnian birds. On
the 4th of October, Mr, Thomas De Carteret shot a specimen in fine
plumage at Le Vauroque, Sark, and it was given to Mrs. H. Judkins,
who sent it for preservation to the famous taxidermists, Rowland
Ward & Co., of London. It is said that a Glossy Ibis was shot in Sark
as far back as 1858.
Bar-tailed Godwit. Mr. R. P. Spencer saw four of these birds at Vazon
on the 4th of October, one of which he shot.
Bittern. Mr. Kinnersly killed a Bittern at Grande Mare four winters ago,
and says he found it very good eating. This was the specimen noted in
my Report for 1906, but I did not then record who shot the bird. . In the
case of rare visitors like this it is well to have all the particulars possible.
Grey Lag Goose. Three specimens, out of a flock of eight birds, were
shot at Grande Mare by Mr. Robin of St. Peter’s on the 24th of October.
Smith in his Birds of Guernsey says he is not aware that a Grey Lag
Goose has ever been seen in these islands.
ED: MARQUAND, Sec. Ornith. Sect.
THE SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS
OF THE CHANNEL ISLANDS.
BY JOSEPH SINEL.
ALL who are acquainted with the physical aspects of the
Channel Islands are aware that on many parts of their shores,
and especially in their flat and sandy bays, there are, beneath
the sand, large extents of firm black peaty soil, im which
stumps of trees—some of large size—remain, still rooted, in
the position in which they grew.
This forest bed has attracted the attention of writers of
all times, and manifold and varied are the theories that have
been propounded to accouut for it. The legends and tradi-
tions of the monks of St. Michel with regard to it are too
well known to need repetition, and too evidently imaginary to
need refutation. But serious historians have arrived at con-
clusions, and expressed opinions, upon the subject which are
as far from fact as are the legends of the monks.
Even in a work so recent as twenty odd years ago, the
Rev. Mons. Noury, in his Géologie de Jersey, considers a
portion at least, of this same bed, to be the remains of a
manorial estate in St. Ouen’s Bay, which succumbed to the
waves in the fourteenth century ; and certain dues, still paid
by residents in the parish for “droits de porcage” (right of
feeding hogs) or “de percage” (right of way) are said to
refer to the said ground.
Still further, antiquarians claim to have found implements
of bronze and Roman coins in the peat of this forest. Now
all this is error, but error based upon such grounds as to render
it very pardonable, as we shall presently see.
A very remarkable fact, and an inexplicable one is, that
of all who have written about this forest and well described it,
there is not one who has noticed that zt zs the lower of two
distinct beds, and that the section of the upper one is clearly
visible nearly all along St. OQuen’s bay, in the vertical sand-
banks. The bed, which is conspicuously black, shows as a
horizontal band 10 to 20 inches thick all along the white sand,
and this at an elevation of from three to ten feet above the
lower bed. The “ upper peat,” so familiar to well-sinkers and
[1909.]
26 SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS.
builders all through the lower parts of St. Helier’s and St.
OQuen’s, is an extension of the same bed; a layer of sand,
oravel, clay and stone occurring between it and the lower one.
Dr. Dunlop, in a valuable and interesting article entitled
“On Some Jersey Peat Beds,” published in the Bulletin of
the Société Jersiaise for 1896, describes the inland extension of
both beds in detail, but does not mention the fact that the
upper one is traceable in section upon the coast, and there
bears the same relation to the lower bed as it does in the
inland sections. I shall again have occasion to refer to Dr.
Dunlop’s paper, but will first describe my own observations.
Firstly, in the large excavation made for gas-works
extension in Tunnel Street, there occurred the following strata
counting from above downwards :—
1.—Vegetable soil and yellow clay, 4 to 5 feet.
2.—Brownish peat, mixed with sand, with remains of
orasses, moss, &c., from 1 to 3 feet.
3.—Blue clay, sand gravel, shingle and bits of stone,
2 feet to 2 feet 6 inches.
4.—Firm black peat, with trunks of trees, rushes, hazel
branches and hazel nuts in great quantity, 4 to 6
feet.
5.—Clay, sand, and angular fragments of stone (rubble
drift).
(The excavation was 120 feet in diameter and about
15 feet in depth).
In the lower peat Dr. Dunlop found a Neolithic axe, and
some fragments of Neolithic pottery ; also teeth of a large
ruminant, most likely Bos longifrons. In the blue clay, be-
tween the peat beds, Mr. Stanley Guiton found shells of
Purpura lapillus, and of Trochus umbilicatus, molluses still
abundant on our shores, at the present time. And in the
rubble drift, beneath the lower bed, I found a few (and Dr.
Colson found many) flint clippings, evidently of Paleolithic
age. Dr. Dunlop points out that the flint chips had evidently
been deposited after the action of glaciers or of the sea (or of
both) upon this drift, for their sharp edges were intact.
During the excavations for the foundations of St. Paul’s
Church, in New Street, I had frequent opportunities of seeing
the sections, but unfortunately I took no measurements. All
that I clearly remember is that two peat beds were cut
through, and that in the lower one, which was very thick,
there occurred what must have been the entire skeleton of an
ox, doubtless Bos longifrons.
SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS. o7
In the excavation for the New Market in Beresford
Street, I took sketches and notes of the following layers from
above downwards :—
1.—Rubble from old buildings aud fine blown sand, 3 to
4 feet.
2.—Peat, mixed with sand, 1 foot.
3.—Stiff greyish clay, and fragments of stone, 3 feet.
4,—Firm black peat, hazel nuts, fragments of trees, and
Juncus conglomeratus, abundant, 4 to 5 feet.
5,—Clay and stone.
In the lower peat Mr. Dancaster found a perfectly round
stone about the size of a tennis ball; it was blackened by the
peat, and bore no marks of usage as an implement. This
may have been a missile used by a Neolithic hunter.
In the excavation for the foundations of the Victoria
Club, within fifty or sixty yards of the last, the strata were
the same, except that the lower peat was absent.
Mr. Gilpin, a well-sinker of St. Helier’s, has kindly given
me the following description of the strata passed through in
boring a well in Peter Street, about 200 yards eastward of the
Victoria Club excavation :—
1.—Clay, 4 feet.
2.—Brown peat, 2 feet.
3.—Clay, gravel, and fragmeuts of stone, 4 feet.
4.—Black peat, with wood and hazel nuts, 14 feet.
5.—Blue clay, gravel and stone fragments, 5 or 6 feet.
6.—Rock (Granite).
Dr. Dunlop, in the article to which I have referred above,
gives details of four excavations and borings in the neigh-
bourhood of the old North Pier, all at the margin of low-tide
level. In these the order of the beds is the same ; the thick-
nesses of each varying in the same proportion as in the inland
sections. ‘The absence of the lower peat bed in the Victoria
Club excavation, in close proximity to two sites where it
is abundantly in evidence, is a point of importance to which I
shall again have occasion to refer.
Of exposures that occur from time to time upon the coast
by the removal of the overlying sand and shingle by the sea,
the principal ones are as follows :—
At Gréve d’Azette, about 200 yards due south of Grande
Charriére. Here the exposure is frequent, and an oak tree,
20 feet in length by about 4 feet in diameter, which lies
prostrate, but is still firmly rooted at one side, has been in that
position to my personal knowledge for quite fifty years, and
28 SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS.
although continually bombarded with shingle, and buffetted
by the waves, it does not seem to have suffered to any extent
during that period. In the peat near this tree Mr. Duprey,
of St. Helier’s, found two horn scoops or spoons, no doubt of
Neolithic age.
Exposures occur occasionally at Gréve de Lecq, and at
St. Brelade’s ; constantly in St. Ouen’s Bay at high tide
margin, between the banks of pebbles, and near La Puiente,
in proximity to the sand-banks, where it is possible to stand
upon the lower bed and examine the section of the upper one
five feet above. But the most extensive and important ex-
posures occur on the northern side of St. Ouen’s Bay, although
here the exposure is rather rare, the sand usually lying from
five to ten feet thick above the peat.
In September, 1902, it was my good fortune to be spending
a few days at the house of my friend Mr. Dancaster, close to
the shore at this part of the coast, when the largest exposure
that has probably occurred within the memory of anyone now
living took place. On that day, for about half a mile parallel
with the shore, and extending from high tide margin nearly to
the distant low-water limit, the whole surface of the old forest
was laid bare. Rooted stumps, oak and alder chiefly, stood
there in profusion; some had rotted away, or were worn down,
to the level of the peat, but hundreds stood in relief, ranging
from one to four feet above the soil. In diameter the trees
ranged from a few inches to two or three feet, and one large
one (an oak) that I measured had a diameter of no less than
4 feet 6 inches at three feet and a half above the ground. I
counted four hundred of these trees in the portion of the bay
which was accessible to me. Fortunately I was able to obtain
the loan of a good half-plate camera, and thus to secure a
couple of photographs of this unusual scene. One of these
photographs has been reproduced in the Bulletin of the
Société Jersiaise for 1908, and an enlargement of the other is
now hanging on the walls of the Museum of that Society.
The outer portion of the trees is carbonized and breaks with a
black crystalline fracture ; but the interior portion is sound
and hard, a condition which would lead many to doubt the
extreme antiquity of these old trunks. But I may here
mention that a naturalist friend of mine—an official of the
British Museum (Mr. Bunting)—has just written me to say
that with the remains of a young mammoth recently discovered
below 25 feet of gravel in the north of London (October,
1909), there are some roots of willow “which cut, and make
microscopical sections as if they were but dead of yesterday.”
SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS. 29
Of peat and forest bed exposures in the other Channel
Islands, I have only seen the one at Vazon Bay, Guernsey.
Here the lower bed coincides exactly with that of St.
Ouen’s Bay in Jersey, with the exception, that owing
to a thinner covering of sand the attrition of shingle
and pebble has worn “the tree stumps down to the level
of the peat. Exposures occur at L’Ancresse and Perelle
Bay, in Guernsey ; and I understand from Mr. Marquand
that there is one of considerable extent on the north-
east of Alderney at Longy Bay. As regards the animal
remains that occur in this lower bed we have: KElytra
of beetles, everywhere plentiful, and bones of Bos lopgi-
frons in all the openings of any extent in Jersey, while in
Guernsey, besides Bos longifrons, there have been found
remains of Red Deer, Wild Boar, Dog (or Wolf), and Kid
(or Fawn).
Now as to the extension of this lower bed. We note it
on the coasts of at least three of our islands: Jersey, Guern-
sey and Alderney, and also all along the adjacent shore of
France. Its intermediate existence is borne out by the oyster
dredgers working in from 10 to 15 fathoms of water north
and east of Jersey, for here they frequently bring up in their
dredges lumps of peat and fragments of wood. We also
observe on the Admiralty Chart, in the description of the
ground at some points of sounding, the words “rotten ground,”
which is obviously the same peaty soil, and Prof. Geikie
reports it as occurring in the middle of the English Channel.
The upper peat bed, whicn has been so completely ignored
by all who have dealt with the ancient history of the islands,
differs in many respects from the lower one. The peat is
chiefly brown or reddish-brown in colour, rarely black ; no
trees occur in it, at least in these islands, nor are the hazel
nuts or beetle elytra which are so abundant in the lower
one here represented. The large Juncus conglomeratus is
replaced by rushes of smaller kinds, and sphagnum
and grasses are plentiful. Of animal remains, all I have
found are the little snails, Helix caperata and H. hispida,
and in one portion, 10 feet below the soil in Mr. Dancaster’s
grounds, many shells of the little water snail, Limnea peregra.
I have described these beds at greater length than was
my original intention, for my chief object was rather to trace
their history. This portion of my task, thanks to the ex-
haustive treatment of similar phenomena on other shores in
Professor Geikie’s Prehistoric Europe, is an easy one. The
lower of these beds dates far back into prehistoric times, and
30 SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS.
has shared in several oscillations of the land in general. It is
a portion of the great forest extension of immediate post-
glacial times, for it corresponds in every detail, stratigraphical,
botanical and zeolos gical, with the lower post-glacial forest
beds of the British and neighbouring continental coasts.
A remarkable feature of this bed is its apparently in-
congruous mixture of plants. Here we have grand old oaks,
and a profusion of hazel, vegetation that would not grow in
soft and bogey soil. Then amongst the remains of these we
find Juncus conglomeratus and many other bog-loving species.
This is not merely a local feature, but is one that is general
throughout this vast forest extension, and of this Professor
Geikie gives the following explanation :—
After the last great glacial epoch and the submergence
of land which was coincident with it, there came a time of
elevation, accompanied by a warm and generous climate.
Vegetation throve luxuriantly, and the vast plains, erstwhile
at the bottom of a shallow sea, became clothed with trees ; it
was “The Age of Great Forests,” and an abundant fauna
flourished throughout. Neolithic man was there, and left
abundant evidences of his presence. Ages passed. By degrees
the climate changed and became cold and wet. Oak and
hazel could no longer thrive, and little by little the majesty of
the forest disappeared. The trees died and decayed in szté,
rotting down to the level of the soil or near it; then bog
plants grew over and between what remained of them. Land
subsidence had again set in, and the great sand banks that
had marked the sea margin spread by degrees over the plain,
the sea following and depositing sand and silt, and as it neared
the higher g ground, clay and stone fragments to form that bed
from 3 to 5 feet thick, which is so clearly shown in all the
sections we have of the soil. Sometimes the sea tore up
portions of the forest bed, laying bare the glacial rubble
drift below, which accounts for our finding certain portions of
the soil, as in the section for the foundations of the Victoria
Club already mentioned, in which the “lower peat ” is missing.
Finally the sea covered the whole erstwhile forest land, and
washing our cliffs and sloping shores, left that line of gravel,
pebble and sand, that forms the “25 foot raised beach ” so
well marked all around our coasts.
Next we see another period of land elevation. The sand
and silt, clay and stone spread by the sea became once more
dry land. Vegetation again appeared and furnished the
material for our upper peat bed. This is the period of Jersey’s
last continental connection. Jersey is united with France,
SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS. 31
and Herm is again a part of Guernsey. Neolithic remains
are no longer found on undisturbed land, nor are the bones of
Bos longifrons and its congeners. We find at this level
implements of bronze, and it is upon ths bed, and not upon
the lower one, that Roman coins have been discovered, unless
of course these may have fallen to the lower one on such
portions of the coast as have been denuded of the upper
layer.
Then comes the final act in the drama. The land once
more subsides and the sea encroaches, the river estuaries
between the islands widen ; Jersey once more becomes insular,
and Herm is parted from Guernsey. The manorial estate
and its grounds in St. Ouen’s Bay, which were situated on
the upper bed, succumb to the waves, seaside villages on
the French coast share the same fate, and the land has
reached its present configuration. It is this upper bed, which
legend, tradition and faulty history have confounded with
the vastly more ancient, 7 fact early post glacial bed, which
lay five feet beneath it.
As a rule it is only the lower bed which becomes exposed
on our coasts, when the sea shifts from place to place the
layers of sand and silt which it once laid upon it; for the
upper peat is not sufficiently compact, nor is its Immediate
sub-stratum sufficiently firm, to withstand wave action, so
that it becomes broken up and mixed wih the accompanying
sand. We note, however, that in some places, as for instance,
near the North Pier in Jersey, it has subsided beneath the
low tide level without being disturbed.
A question that must occur to every reflective person
that views the remains of the old forest exposed upon our
coasts is, How long is it since these trees lived and flourished ?
The answer is usually given in terms that convey no meaning
at all to an unscientific person, and only a relative one to
those who have a little knowledge of geology. It is said that
they belong to “ Post-glacial”’ or to “ Neolithic ” times. The
need for something more definite has been felt by the masters
of the science which deals with these things, and efforts have
been made to estimate in years the antiquity of the Neolithic
lake dwellings in Switzerland. The figures arrived at by
different methods of computation give us a period varying
from 4,000 to 7,000 years, which figures, even assuming that
they refer to Neolithic man’s final occupation, Professor
Geikie considers far too low.
When I go down to Gréve d’Azette and sit upon the
same old oak stump that I sat upon fifty years ago, and note
32 SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS.
no change in its aspect, although when it was a living tree the
sea was far away, after which the whole land subsided until
the waters covered the trunk to a depth of twenty-five or
thirty feet and buried it under five feet of silt; when I
remember that subsequently the land rose until it formed part
of a plain on which another sort of vegetattron grew; and
that the land has yet again subsided, and the waves laid bare
the same old dead tree, as far as soil is concerned, but covered
it at high tide by thirty feet of water. Reviewing all this in
my mind and remembering that “ Nature does not move by
bounds,” I ask myself, How long is it since this tree was
srowing ? Were a friend to suggest 30,000 years, I should
not be able to discuss or to demonstrate, but I should feé/ that
even his large claim was but too moderate.
Professor Geikie, who has treated of these subjects in
such magnificent manner, suggests that considering the cli-
matic as well as other changes that have occurred since those
very remote times, it is rather to. the physicist and the astro-
nomer than to the geologist that we must look for that more
precise chronology which we may hopefully expect to find
some day established.
It is pleasant at times to lay aside the dry calculations of
science and to let fancy take a flight and reconstruct as it
were, to the imagination, the scenes that greeted the vision of
the Neolithic man of these lands. When the curtain rises,
say in the middle of the great forest period, probably 30,000
years ago, we observe a level or at most a slightly undulating
plain stretching away for 300 miles to the west. This plain
is densely wooded except for its two or three miles wide
margin, which consists of marsh and blown sand. A line of
great sand dunes forms its boundary and marks the edge of
the Atlantic ocean. These islands, already shaped by the
seas and carved by glacier and stream, have their present
form, only somewhat more extended in height and in area.
They stand as rocky elevations in the sea of forest. A large
river, the Greater Seine, runs past the north of Guernsey,
and on its far side the forest spreads as far as the shores of
Cornwall. A stream, the Greater Ay, runs from the Cotentin,
between the banks of Les Beufs on the south, and the
Kerehos, Dirouelles and Paternosters on the north, and passes
to the southward of Guernsey to join the Greater Seine.
Between Jersey and the Minquier rocks runs the river Tvtus
of Ptolemy, and a larger river, the Greater Ronce, flows
between the Minquier rocks and the Cétes du Nord, to join
the Greater Seine near its estuary.
SUBMERGED PEAT AND FOREST BEDS. 30
Herds of red deer occupy hill and dale, and are stalked
by man and coursed by wolf. Vast herds of the long-faced
ox roam through the forest land, the wild boar has its lair in
the hazel thickets, and the beaver its dam on the banks of the
Titus ; the otter -has its home on the river banks, and the
marten and the wild cat inhabit the woods. The great Irish
elk and the brown bear are occasional visitors, and are no
doubt tracked with eagerness by the more venturesome
hunters.
The skilled artizan grinds and polishes axes made of the
stone of the islands, sometimes of the banded sandstone of
Alderney, more frequently of the hard diabase of St. Samp-
son’s ; but his axes de luxe are fashioned with extra care out
of the beautiful greenstone of the hermitage. He has an eye
to ornament also, and drills and fashions beads of stone.
Arrow heads he makes of flint, for he has not yet heard of
metal, but these are barbed and finished with care, and are
quite unlike the crude implements used by his long bygone
prototype, that could be had for the gathering on the moor-
lands and in the rock grottoes. Neolithic man makes pottery
from the blue glacial clay, but does not bake it well; it is only
cooked half through and is therefore fragile. His larder 1s
well stocked, for beef and venison abound, and hazel nuts for
dessert are to be had in profusion. He is probably an epicure
and his horn spoons suggest soups. He dwells in tents or
wooden huts, for no stone habitation marks his presence, nor
does he appear to have occupied the cave dwellings in the
cliffs, for only paleolithic implements have been found there.
“We can picture to ourselves,” as Professor Geikie says,
“the little round-headed people coiled up under their skin
tents, or squatting round their fires toasting fishes and roast-
ing bones, very much as certain tribes do at the present day.”
The earliest sun-worshippers are now erecting their rough
temples of great stones with skilful orientation and no mean
engineering skill. It is the beginning of the megalithic period,
the age of monuments to the great dead, the period of the
most ancient of the antiquarian’s “ Long Barrows.”
Thus ages roll on, and although each generation marks no
perceptible change, the relentless sea with its vanguard of
sand dunes is slowly annexing the land, and the climate is
changing for the worse. In course of time the sea washes the
shores of these islands at the level of our 25 foot raised beach,
and the curtain has fallen on Neolithic man.
THE GUERNSEY VOLE:
(Microtus sarnius, MILLER.)
0
Ir is only within the last year or two that the smaller
mammalia indigenous to the Channel Islands have been
attentively studied by expert zoologists; and although a
great deal still remains before an absolutely exhaustive
list of our mammalian fauna can be compiled, enough has
been done to encourage and stimulate further research. It
is now ascertained that Jersey possesses a distinct species
of Bank Vole ( Hvotomys cesarius ) described last year as
new to science; and this year Professor Gerrit S. Miller
has determined the common Field Vole of (Guernsey to
be an undescribed species to which he has given the name
of Microtus sarnius.
In addition to these two extremely interesting new
species, Prof. Miller finds that the common Shrew of Jersey
belongs to an entirely new race, and he describes it in the
Annals and Magazine of Natural History for May, 1909,
as Sorex araneus, sub-species fretalis. As far as 1s known
at present it appears that the two new Jersey forms, and
the new Guernsey one, are confined to their respective
islands, which, to say the least, is very remarkable.
The experts at the British Museum have for the last
two years been keenly interested in these new Channel Island
mammals, and it is to one of their staff, Mr. R. H. Bunting,
that the credit is due of obtaining the necessary materials
for the purpose of examination and study. Both this year
and last, Mr. Bunting has visited the islands and worked
with enthusiasm and energy in collecting specimens and
observing their habits ; consequently he has acquired a better
knowledge than any one else of their ways and mode of
life. In response to a request for notes end _ particulars
on the subject of the Guernsey Vole, Mr. Bunting has
very kindly forwarded the following observations which are
of the greatest value and interest, and for his doing so
this Society desires to record its grateful acknowledgments.
[1909. ]
THE GUERNSEY VOLE. 35
Writing from the Natural History Museum, South Ken-
sington, under date of October 11th, 1909, Mr. Bunting
Says:
d ‘““My short stay in Guernsey gave me such little opportunity
to study the habits of its mammalia, that I fear any notes of
mine on the subject must be somewhat indefinite, especially
since my object was merely to procure specimens; lack of
time compelling me to leave for local naturalists the interesting
advantage of working out their life-story. However, there are
some facts about Wicrotus sarnius which I can safely give.
“Tike the common Field Vole (Wicrotus agrestis) it is
gregarious, but unlike that animal, which lives in rough, un-
cultivated grass-land, the Guernsey Vole (or at least it was
so with all those which I took) inhabits the earth banks of
hedges dividing fields under cultivation, preferably those
which are not near a roadway or houses. Traps laid in likely
places, such as waste furze ground, amongst the cliffs, and
those set in open fields yielded nothing but the Common Rat (J7us
decumanus ) and the long-tailed Field Mouse (JZ. sylvaticus) ;
on this side of the Channel in such localities one might
reasonably expect to find Field Voles. The runs used by the
voles are well marked not only by the earth being well
trodden, but also by the over-arching of such grasses and plants
as grow in front of them. That the voles have themselves
made these runs seems probable, since they are often too
small to have been previously made by rats, and generally
too high in the hedge and too exposed to be old mole tracks.
They are also used by the Continental Shrew (Crocidura
russula) which seems very common in all the hedges. Such
vole holes as I examined penetrated a good way into the bank,
and became too complicated for me to examine further without
incurring the displeasure of the farmer who works the land.
“Some of the female specimens taken at the latter end of
June contained well developed fceti, others were in a state
of lactation; but breeding must commence earlier than that,
since immature specimens were procured at the same time ;
indeed it is probable that young are produced all through
the warmer months of the year, as some quite small ones
were sent me in August of last year.
“‘T did not examine critically the contents of the stomach,
but my traps were baited with oatmeal, biscuit, breed, cheese
or bacon; the last bait is the only one I[ cannot positively
remember to have been taken by the voles, which may prove
on closer observation not to be strict vegetarians. Traps
visited at dusk as well as in the early morning sometimes
contained voles, which consequently must be diurnal as well
as nocturnal! in their habit of feeding. They were also taken
during heavy rain.
36 THE GUERNSEY VOLE.
“The average measurements of my specimens are as
follows :—
“Head and body 108° mm., tail 37-4 mm., hindfoot
17°2 mm.; this is a low average, including as it does many
specimens not fully grown. The type measures :—H. and b.
118 mm., tl. 42 mm., h. ft. 18°55 mm. Males and females
showed no difference in size.
“ As to the frequency of the Guernsey Vole I have but
little data to offer. They appeared fairly common in certain
hedges at St. Martin’s (the only parish in which I was able
to trap) and seemed to be well known (as “mulots’”’) by the
neighbouring farmers. Plagues of field voles have been re-
corded in ancient times and have occurred fairly recently both
in Great Britain and on the continent; but I have not heard
of such an unhappy event ever having taken place in Guernsey.
Possibly the fact that the Island is under such an intense
state of cultivation, together with the predilection which cats
share with stoats and many of the rapacious birds as kestrels
and owls for vole flesh, prevents a too rapid increase in modern
times. ;
“As Mr. Sinel has conclusively proved Guernsey to be
so much older as an island than Jersey, it may be wondered
that Microtus sarnius is not found in the latter island as
well. But the presence of a Bank Vole (Hvotomys cesarius)
in Jersey may account for its absence, in the same way that
the introduction of the common Grey Rat explains the dis-
appearance of the old Black Rat in haunts where once it was
common. Millais in his book on British Mammals seems to
give colour to this theory when—writing of the common bank
vole (Hvotomys glareolus)—he says ‘if caught in a trap with
the field vole, the latter has no chance, it is killed and eaten
without ceremony.’
“To obtain a more precise account of the Guernsey Vole,
it is necessary to stay in its vicinity for some time; traps
should be laid all through the year to note changes of peltage,
times of breeding, and variation. Its habits should be recorded
from specimens kept in captivity (they may easily be taken
alive in ordinary box-traps, and form most entertaining pets,
which have the additional qualification of giving but little
trouble). If members of the Guernsey Natural Science Society
could be induced to take this trouble they would obtain much
useful knowledge for all interested in the subject.
“There are also other small mammals in Guernsey of
which but little is known. The local Stoat is hkely to prove
new to science, and only awaits the confirmation afforded by a
few other adult specimens, to be described as such. The Bat
fauna is very indifferently known, and—considering the prox-
imity of continental species—new records would not be a
THE GUERNSEY VOLE. 37h
surprising result, if likely hibernating quarters such as caves,
cellars, lofts, old trees, &c., were searched during the coming
winter. The Water-Vole might turn up if such localities as
the marshes at Rocquaine and Vazon Bays were trapped.
L’Ancresse Common offers a fine field for trapping also. The
large yellow-necked variety of the Long-tailed Field Mouse
(Mus sylvaticus var. flavicollis), although its presence does not
seem probable, has yet to be definitely listed as absent from
Guernsey. And then the neighbouring islands of the Bailiwick
have still to be worked. I wish sufficient enthusiasm could be
aroused amongst the Guernsey naturalists to settle these inte-
resting problems. If they could be influenced in this way
(and surely the discovery of Microtus sarnius as a new species
should awaken some local interest), I feel sure the Island will
reward them for their trouble. Has the Society a Committee
or section devoted to Mammals? In any case I am enclosing
directions for the preservation of small skins in the hope that
they may be of use to someone, and I shall be glad to do any-
thing I can to help. If skins or specimens in the flesh are sent
to me I will get them critically determined. Mr. Sinel sent
me, a few days ago, part of a stoat’s skull from St. Ouen’s,
which is interesting from the fact that it has never had its full
complement of upper adult molars—no doubt an abnormality.
I want stoats badly from all the islands.
“The foregoing remarks on Microtus sarnius are, I
am afraid, hardly in a fit state for publication, but if of any use
they are quite at the service of the Society.”
It may be well to append to Mr. Bunting’s interesting
notes the original description of the Guernsey Vole, as given
by Prof. Miller in the An. & Mag. of Nat. Hist. for May,
1909, omitting some of the technical details which would not
be of much use to a non-specialist.
Microtus sarnius, sp. n.
Type collected at St. Martin’s, Guernsey, July 23, 1908, by
R. H. Bunting. Like the large forms of Microtus agrestis but
middle upper molar with second inner triangle absent. Colour
above essentially as in M. agrestis, though somewhat less dark
and reddish; underparts a strongly contrasted light grey.
Measurements: Head and body 118 mm.; tail 42; hind foot
18:5; condylo-basal length of skull 27°8. Eight specimens
examined, all from Guernsey. While its external and cranial
characters show that this species is a member of the Microtus
agrestis group, the pattern of its enamel folding is exactly
siamlar to that of J; arvalis. ... . The eight specimens,
though representing all ages from less than half-grown young to
fully adult, show no noteworthy variation in colour or in teeth.
THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS.
BY E. D. MARQUAND, A.L.S.
0
IF we clear a piece of land, dig the soil and turn it over, a
multitude of seedling plants immediately spring up and cover
the ground ; and then commences a struggle for existence.
Those individuals which are more vigorous than the others,
or in some way better fitted for their surroundings, thrive and
develop rapidly ; the remainder are crowded out and perish.
When the area in which this contest takes place is limited,
and has already become fairly well stocked with vegetation,
new forms wedge themselves into the crowd at the expense of
the older and less vigorous ones. In this case the competition
is severe, the intruder has quite enough to do to maintain its
own ground, and is hardly able to increase in numbers to any
large extent.
The majority of wild flowers produce an abundance of
seed ; and myriads of seeds of all kinds are blown about and
scattered far and wide over the face of the country year after
year. Yet it is strange that the average quantity of any
particular kind of flowering plant appears to remain pretty
constant in a locality. Certain species predominate by reason
of the profuse abundance of individuals; they form, so to
speak, the groundwork of the vegetation, and determine its
general character as a whole. Other species, although ex-
tremely common in the same locality, are always much less
numerous when you count the specimens. Take for example
two plants which may be described as abundant—the Daisy
and the Ragwort. They grow in the same kind of situations,
they belong to the same natural order, and they each produce
a large quantity of seed. Yet the daisy plants immensely
outnumber the ragwort plants, probably in the proportion of
quite a hundred to one. It is clear therefore that some
influence must be at work to check the multiplication of the
ragwort while it favours the increase of the daisy, because the
relative number of specimens of each kind growing in a given
locality does not perceptibly vary, even in the course of many
years. “If we ask ourselves,” says Darwin, in his Origin of
[1909.]
THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS. 39
Species, “why this or that species is rare, we answer that
something is unfavorable in its conditions of life ; but what
that something is, we can hardly ever tell.” And elsewhere
in the same classical work the author points out how “ under
nature, the slightest difference of structure or constitution may
well turn the nicely balanced scale in the struggle for life, and
so be preserved.”
In the case of a small islet, situated at some distance
from the land, the struggle for existence among the plants
which clothe its surface must be greatly intensified, and the
chance of some particular species being ultimately crowded
out and disappearing altogether must be enormously increased.
The extermination of a plant, which would be only temporary
when the locality was part of a large area, would be permanent
if it occurred upon a small island. Where there is a con-
tinuous land area, the occurrence of some unusual climatic
condition, such for example as prolonged drought, might
produce a serious result locally ; but in all probability it
would not alter the character of the flora of that region as a
whole, because in course of time the plants would spread from
the adjoining country unaffected by the drought, and so
replenish the devastated area. But in an islet such a drought
would cause the permanent extirpation of all the weaker
forms, and their place would be at once occupied by the
sturdier tenants of the soil which had survived the rainless
period. Those plants which were capable of withstanding
drought would rnultiply and spread, and those that could not
would disappear. * Many other hostile agencies are continually
at work besides drought, such as the violence of wind and
waves, and the destruction caused by small predatory crea-
tures inhabiting the islet.
In various ways, then, an isolated spot of this kind would
eradually be stripped of a number of plants which had
formed part of its natural flora when it was still united to the
mainland. One by one all the species that from some cause
or other were unable to withstand such hardships as might
occasionally assail the islet would slowly die out, and at last
only the hardiest and strongest would survive as the champions
of vegetation. ‘The more limited the area of conflict, that is
to say, the smaller the islet, the more severe would be the
struggle for existence.
It has repeatedly been demonstrated that small and
restricted areas, such as the little islets we are about to
consider, will support the largest possible amount of plant
life when they are occupied by very diverse forms.
40 THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS.
Darwin found that a piece of turf less than four feet
square, which had been exposed for many years to exactly
the same conditions, supported 20 species of plants, and these
20 species were found to belong to 18 genera and 8 orders :
which shows how much the plants differed from each other.
As we shall see presently the forms occupying a very small
and sharply defined space often belong to as many genera
as there are species.
In this little archipelago of ours there are to be found
green islets of various sizes. Some of them are nothing
more than mere rocks capped with a modicum of vegetation.
Others are comparatively large, like Lihou on the west coast
of Guernsey, and Brechou, close to Sark; each of which
possesses several acres of cultivated and pasture land, besides
of course, a large extent of rocky, infertile ground. When-
ever land is brought under cultivation, a new element is
introduced which modifies and alters. the character of a flora.
Among the farmer’s crops agricultural weeds spring up, the
tilled soil favours their growth, they increase and spread with
astonishing rapidity, and as a natural result in a very short
time a number of plants quite alien tu the region flourish
among the truly native inhabitants of the soil. The residence
of a single family for even a twelvemonth upon some hitherto
uninhabited islet-—assuming that a portion of the land is
worked and planted, and a few fowls and small domestic
animals are kept—is quite sufficient to effect a complete
change in its aspect, by the unintentional introduction of
numbers of agrarian weeds. I shall havé occasion to give
a striking instance of this in speaking of the islet of Burhou.
But an expert botanist can always, or almost always, tell with
certainty by glancing at the plants that grow on a deserted
island whether it has in times past been inhabited or not.
Many of the little verdure-capped rocks in our seas
are practically inaccessible. Sometimes the powerful current
and swell of the waves is too strong to permit of the approach
of a boat except on rare occasions; sometimes the smooth
walls of rock that rise vertically out of the water afford
no foothold for an adventurous climber ; sometimes the land-
ing appears too hazardous to tempt even an enthusiastic
botanist. Several of the green islets within our area, how-
ever, can be reached without much difficulty ; and they
afford plenty of material for study to those who feel in-
terested in this line of investigation.
Ever since I first began, some twenty years ago, to
pay any attention to the botany of the Sarnian Islands,
THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS. 4]
I have felt a special interest in these isolated specks of
vegetation. However tiny and insignificant they may be,
however sparse and scanty the verdure, there is always
something to be learnt from them. On these exposed shores
one sees familiar plants dwarfed and starved almost beyond
recognition, and yet, strange to say, each one of them
“bearing seed after his kind,” and thus filling its place
and doing its work in the economy of nature. So whenever
the opportunity has presented itself I have made it a point of
carefully cataloguing the plants found in such places. And
as my notes and lists have gradually accumulated, my interest
in the work has increased, because almost every one of these
detached bits of land, even the very smallest, presents some
feature which was quite unexpected, some unlooked-for sur-
prise. Very often islets, which are in other respects similar,
exhibit an astonishing disparity in their vegetable productions ;
and more often still it happens that some of the common
shore plants which abound on the coast close by, are, strangely
enough, entirely wanting. So far as we can see nothing i is
missing which is favourable to their growth, and plenty of
seed is bound to be blown across anc year Pacey the shore
opposite, or carried by birds, and yet the plants refuse to
grow there. Something is wanting, but, as Darwin remarked,
what it is we do not know.
Although every endeavour has been made to render the
lists as complete as possible, I cannot claim that they are
absolutely exhaustive in every instance, because it has been
impossible for me to pay a second visit to some of the distant
islets. But it may be stated that a pretty accurate and
critical knowledge of the flora of the Channel Islands has
enabled me to search with special care for certain species
which I considered most likely to occur, and their absence
from certain islets is quite as great a surprise to me as it will
be to any botanist who studies and compares these lists.
I propose now to enumerate all the flowering plants and
ferns occurring on each of the islets and rocks “which have
been examined, beginning with those that support the largest
number of species. The botanical names and classification
are those used in my Flora of Guernsey and the Lesser
Channel Islands, and exactly the same order is followed
in all the lists, so that it will be easy to compare one with
another.
A catalogue of the plants of Lihou Island will be found
on page 471 of my Flora, and therefore it 1s not necessary to
reproduce it here. In the same work also there is given a
42 THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS.
list of the flora of Jethou, to which five species have been
added subsequently. The plants of Brechou, or Ile aux
Marchands, on the western side of Sark, were carefully
studied by Mr. Cecil Hurst in 1902, and a full catalogue
of them, together with much interesting information about
the island, was published in the Transactions of this Society
for that year. These three islands are of larger size than
any of those we are about to consider ; but for the purpose of
comparison it may be stated that the total number of flower-
ing plants and ferns recorded for each is as follows :
Brechow ......0-...5.-. 109 speeness
Jethou.seaceet ee: Siceeee ON eee
LhOU Vides tosses Oe
: This is the central one of three islets which
Houmet Paradis. lie almost in a line off the Vale coast, between
Bordeaux Harbour and Fort Doyle. Itis situated about one-fifth of a
mnile from the shore, and is accessible at half-tide by a slightly raised
natural causeway of shingle and pebbles. Although of sufficiently
large extent, for it measures roughly about 200 yards by 70, it does
not appear that Houmet Paradis was ever permanently inhabited ;
but at the eastern end there is an abandoned quarry of considerable
size, and on the opposite side of the islet there are still standing the
ruined walls of some building which probably served as a shelter for
the quarrymen. The vegetation, especially in the central portion, is
rich and luxuriant, and consists of an unusually large number of
species; so that it differs altogether from Lihou, a much larger but
less productive island off the western coast of Guernsey. The follow-
ing 107 plants comprise all the species I have been able to discover
during repeated visits to this extremely interesting islet.
Ranunculus acris. Lotus major.
repens. hispidus.
Glaucium luteum. Vicia sativa.
Fumaria confusa. angustifolia.
Cochlearia danica. Arthrolobium ebracteatum.
Raphanus maritimus. Potentilla Tormentilla.
Polygala vulgaris. Rubus cesius.
Silene maritima. sp.
Lychnis diurna. Sedum anglicum.
Sagina procumbens.
ciliata.
maritima.
Cerastium triviale.
tetrandrum.
Lepigonum rupestre.
Hypericum humifusum.
Geranium molle.
Ulex Europeeus.
Trifolium pratense.
arvense.
subterraneum.
repens.
procumbens.
minus.
Lotus corniculatus.
Cotyledon umbilicus.
Crithmum maritimum.
Daucus gumimifer.
Lonicera Periclymenum.
Galium Aparine.
mollugo.
verum.
Bellis perennis.
Achillea Millefolium.
Anthemis nobilis.
Matricaria inodora.
Senecio Jacobeea.
Carduus lanceolatus.
arvensis.
Hypocheeris radicata.
Thrincia hirta.
Houmet Benes
THE VEGETATION
Leontodon autumnale.
Taraxacum officinale.
Sonchus oleraceus.
asper.
Crepis virens.
Hieracium umbellatum.
Jasione montana.
Calluna vulgaris.
Erica cinerea.
Erythrea Centaurium.
Convolvulus arvensis.
Solanum Dulcamara.
Orobanche minor.
Pedicularis sylvatica.
Eufragia viscosa.
Euphrasia officinalis.
Teucrium Scorodonia.
Anagallis arvensis.
Armeria maritima.
Plantago Coronopus.
lanceolata.
Chenopodium album.
murale.
Beta maritima.
Atriplex deltoidea.
Rumex crispus.
Acetosa.
Acetosella.
Parietaria diffusa.
OF SMALL ISLETS. 43
Urtica dioica.
Romulea Columne.
Scilla autumunalis.
Endymion nutans.
Luzula campestris.
multiflora.
Curex arenaria.
preecox.
Anthoxanthum odoratum.
Agrostis vulgaris.
alba.
Holcus lanatus.
Aira caryophyllea.
Poa annua.
trivialis.
pratensis.
Sclerochloa loliacea.
Dactylis glomerata.
Festuca sciuroides.
ovina.
rubra.
Serrafalcus mollis.
Triticum repens.
pungens.
Hordeum murinum.
Lolium perenne.
Asplenium Adiantum-nigrum.
Pteris aquilina.
A Situated about 200 yards from the extremity
*’ of the northern arm of Bordeaux Harbour,
across a rough shingly beach which is open during the greater part of
each tide. In shape this islet is narrowly triangular, with irregularly
indented sides; its greatest length being approximately 80 yards, and
its width at the base or eastern end, about 50 yards. Scattered masses
of rock protrude here and there over the whole surface, which slopes
gently on all sides, from about the middle. Within this small area
no less than sixty-nine plants occur, as enumerated below. There
is another green islet of much smaller size on the south-west side,
separated from the present one by a wide and deep channel ; but it is
not properly entitled to rank with those described in this paper, as
it is never completely surrounded by the sea.
Ranunculus Ficaria.
repens.
Fumaria confusa.
Cardamine hirsuta.
Cochlearia danica.
Raphanus maritimus.
Silene anglica.
maritima.
Stellaria media.
Cerastium triviale.
tetrandrum.
Polycarpon tetraphyllum.
Lepigonum rupestre.
Geranium molle.
EKrodium cicutarium.
Linum angustifohum.
Ulex europeus.
Trifolium pratense.
arvense.
repens.
minus.
Lotus corniculatus.
Vicia lathyroides.
Ornithopus perpusillus.
Potentilla Tormentilla.
Rubus sp.
Sedum anglicum.
Cotyledon umbilicus.
Crithmum maritimum.
Daucus gummifer.
Galium verum.
Bellis perennis.
Achillea Millefolium.
Senecio vulgaris.
44
Crevichon.
THE VEGETATION
Senecio sylvaticus.
Jacobeea.
Carduus lanceolatus.
Hypocheeris radicata.
Thrincia hirta.
Taraxacum officinale.
Sonchus oleraceus.
Crepis virens.
Jasione montana.
Erica cinerea.
Erythrea centaurium.
Myosotis collina.
Teucrium scorodonia.
Anagallis arvensis.
Armeria maritima.
Plantago coronopus.
lanceolata.
Rumex Acetosa.
OF SMALL ISLETS.
Rumex Acetosella.
Spiranthes autumnalis.
Romulea columne.
Scilla autumnalis.
Luzula campestris.
Carex arenaria.
Anthoxanthum odoratum.
Agrostis alba.
Holcus lanatus.
Aira caryophylea.
Triodia decumbens.
Sclerochloa loliacea.
Dactylis glomerata.
Festuca ovina.
Serrafalcus mollis.
Triticum pungens.
Asplenium lanceolatum.
A conical beacon-crowned rock lying off the northern
end of Jethou, from which it may be reached on foot
at low water. It is said to measure about three acres in extent, and
from certain points of view is very picturesque. There is an old
quarry on one side from which a large quantity of granite was taken
many years ago. Two or three of the flowering plants growing on
Crevichon have not been found in Jethou; and the number of ferns
is rather remarkable, considering their scarcity in the latter island.
Crevichon possesses an additional feature of interest to an
English botanist, from the fact that it was visited in 1838 by the
late Professor C. Cardale Babington, author of the Flora Sarnica.
Forty-five plants, including six ferns, have been found on the rocky
slopes of this islet.
Cakile maritima.
Viola Riviniana.
Silene maritima.
Sagina procumbens.
Ulex europeus.
Lotus corniculatus.
hispidus.
Vicia angustifolia.
Rubus sp.
Sedum anglicum.
Cotyledon umbilicus.
Conium maculatum.
Hedera Helix.
Sambucus nigra.
Lonicera Periclymenum.
Carlina vulgaris.
Arctium minus.
Carduus lanceolatus.
Thrincia hirta.
Leontodon hispidum.
Sonchus asper.
Erythreea centaurium.
Myosotis versicolor.
Solanum Dulcamara.
Nepeta Glechoma.
Teucrium Scorodonia.
Anagallis arvensis.
Armeria maritima.
Rumex crispus.
Atriplex patula.
Euphorbia amygdaloides.
portlandica.
Urtica dioica.
Iris foetidissima.
Ruscus aculeatus.
Endymion nutaus.
Juncus acutus.
Holcus lanatus.
Dactylis glomerata.
Polypodium vulgare.
Lastrea Filix-mas,
Asplenium lanceolatum.
adiantum -nigrum.
marinum.
Pteris aquilina.
A tiny islet rising like a little green hillock
in the middle of L’Erée Bay, at a distance
of about 300 yards from the shore, accessible at half-tide. It is nearly
square in shape, about twenty yards across, and fairly level, with but
few projecting points of rock. On the side nearest the land may still
Chapelle Dom Hue.
THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS. 45
be seen the ruins of an ancient chapel, from which the place takes its
name. Towards the north a shallow gully separates the islet from a
much smaller one, a mere rocky mass only scantily clothed with vege-
tation, and bounded on the seaward side by a huge bulwark of rocks,
which break the force of the mighty Atlantic billows that dash upon
this exposed coast. Visits in early and late summer have yielded me
the following twenty plants.
Cochlearia danica. Sonchus oleraceus.
Silene maritima. Anagallis arvensis.
Sagina maritima. Armeria maritima.
Stellaria media. Plantago coronopus.
Lepigonum rupestre. lanceolata.
Geranium molle. Beta maritima.
Lotus corniculatus. Sclerochloa lolacea.
Crithmum maritimum. © Dactylis glomerata.
Daucus gummifer. Festuca rubra.
Thrincia hirta. Serrafalcus mollis.
Baviou This is the most desolate and lonely of all the islands in
* our archipelago, situated as it is, almost in the middle of
the English Channel, about two miles west of Aiderney, between it and
the perilous reef known as the Casquet Rocks. Burhou is over half a
mile in length, with a width of between 200 and 300 yards; but it lies
low, and the highest point hardly reaches forty feet above high water
level. Stupendous masses of rock are piled up in picturesque groups
all over the island, and everything about the place looks wild, rugged
and storm-beaten, like the relic of a prehistoric age. A small stone-
built house provides shelter for shipwrecked sailors, as well as for
fishermen who may be driven to land there by stress of weather, or
when suddenly overtaken by a dense fog, as happened to me on my first
visit ten year's ago, when I was forced to pass the night on the island.
Until quite recently its only permanent inhabitants were seabirds and
rabbits. The extraordinary feature about Burhou is that almost the
whole of the vegetation which covers the island consists of only four
plants, namely, Lepigonum rupestre, Silene maritima, Endymion nutans
and Pteris aquilina. All the other species form quite an inconspicuous
portion of the general mass. The complete absence of grasses of every
kind, and also of the commonest of composites, is most remarkable. In
1900 the cottage was rented by some French people who went to live
there, and they took with them a few pigs, goats and fowls. They only
remained there a twelvemonth or so, but during that short time several
new plants were introduced, no doubt among the food used for their
animals. When I paid my last visit to Burhou in 1902, I immediately
noticed that four alien plants had already obtained a firm footing and
were growing luxuriantly in the neighbourhood of the cottage; they
had thoroughly established themselves and were spreading rapidly.
These aliens were Urtica dioica, Poa annua, Solanum nigrum and Rumex
acetosella. Among the eighteen plants which composed the entire flora
of the island before its occupation, there are two or three which are
certainly not indigenous; and the probability is that they were intro-
duced during the time the cottage was built. A fuller account of
Burhou and its plants will be found in the Flora of Guernsey.
Cochlearia danica. Crithmum maritimum,
Silene maritima. Lycopsis arvensis.
Sagina maritima. Myosotis arvensis.
Cerastium tetandrum. Glaux maritima.
Lepigonum rupestre. Anagallis arvensis.
Erodium maritimum. Atriplex deltoidea.
Cotyledon umbilicus. Rumex crispus.
46 THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS.
Endymion nutans. Lastrea Filix-mas.
Scirpus maritimus. Pteris aquilina.
A green islet situated about 350 yards from the
Plat Houmet. north-western point of Herm. It can only be
reached on foot at low water during the lowest spring tides, and the
channel which separates it from the main island is extremely dangerous
to cross when the tide is rising. As nearly as I could estimate the
islet is about 70 to 80 yards long and one quarter as wide. The top is
level and profusely stocked with vegetation, but a careful investigation
only revealed seventeen plants, a very small number considering the
size of the islet and its proximity to the main island of Herm.
Cochlearia danica. Armeria maritima
Silene maritima. Plantago coronopus.
Sagina ciliata. Beta maritima.
Cerastium triviale. Rumex Acetosella.
tetrandrum. Poa pratensis.
Lepigonum rupestre. Sclerochloa loliacea.
Trifolium repens Dactylis glomerata.
Lotus corniculatus. Festuca rubra.
Solanum Dulcamara.
Lies off the northernmost point of Guernsey,
about a quarter of a mile from the shore, and
nearly half a mile from Houmet Paradis. Its area as nearly as possible
is 60 yards by 40. The surface is level, hardly at all rocky, and densely
covered with grasses and low plants which do not present much variety.
I have repeatedly visited the spot at different seasons and at intervals
of several years, hoping to increase the list, but I have not succeeded
in detecting more than the following sixteen species. The meagreness
of this flora is the more surprising because of the richness in plants of
the two sister islets, Houmet Paradis and Houmet Benest, both of
which lie off the same coast within a distance of scarcely more than a
mile.
Houmet Homtolle.
Cochlearia danica.
Silene maritima.
Sagina maritima.
Lepigonum rupestre.
Trifolium repens.
Lotus corniculatus.
Daucus gummifer.
Thrincia hirta.
Sonchus oleraceus.
Armeria maritima.
Plantago coronopus.
Beta maritima.
Agrostis alba.
Sclerochloa loliacea.
Festuca rubra.
Lepturus filiformis.
Galois This is one of the numerous small islets and rocks that
* Jie scattered about in the open sea to the northward of
Herm, and are known collectively to the local fishermen as “the
Humps,” a corruption of their French name Amphres. The four
principal islets, all of which bear vegetation, are called respectively
Anfroque, Godaine, Longue Pierre and Galeux. The last-named is the
nearest one to Guernsey, being situated about four miles east of St.
Sampson’s; but it requires some skilful navigation to reach it, owing
to the number of submerged rocks which abound in its immediate
vicinity. Galeux is a raised mound, surrounded by sloping beaches of
large boulders and pebbles. interspersed with gigantic rock-masses; the
area of vegetation is small, «nd much resorted to by sea birds during
the nesting season. The following fifteen plants were all I could
discover during a somewhat hurried search. The most interesting
species is the Tree Mallow, which occurs in considerable plenty ; the
specimens however are quite dwarf and stunted, although they were
flowering freely ut the time of my visit at the end of May.
THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS. 47
Silene maritima. Armeria maritima.
Lepigonum rupestre. Plantago coronopus.
Lavatera arborea. Beta maritima.
Lotus corniculatus. Sclerochloa loliacea.
Crithmum maritimum. Dactylis glomerata.
Daucus gummifer. Festuca rubra.
Galium aparine. Triticum junceum.
Sonchus oleraceus.
This is another of the scattered rocky islets
known as “the Humps.” It is situated half a
mile or so to the north-east of Galeux, and consists mainly of a pyramid
of rock arid boulders, among which there are patches of vegetation.
At the eastern extremity of the islet there rises a solitary column of
rock, square and massive, some 30 or 40 feet in height, which when
looked at from Guernsey has much the appearance of a lighthouse.
As one approaches Longue Pierre it seems to be densely covered with
shrubs, but on a nearer view these are seen to be nothing else but a
thick growth, a miniature forest in fact, of the Tree Mallow, which
grows here in profusion, but only attains a height of some three or four
feet. Everywhere except the extreme top of the islet, which forms a
narrow ledge, the surface of the ground slopes sharply down, broken
only by projecting masses of rock and detached stones. Multitudes of
sea birds breed here, as well as on the other islets, so that as a natural
consequence the plants which grow in the loose, rich soil are more
luxuriant than is usual on tle coast. Curiously enough, the number of
plants which I catalogued on Longue Pierre is exactly the same as on
Galeux, but four of them were found on one islet only.
Longue Pierre.
Silene maritima. Beta maritima.
Lepigonum rupestre. Endymion nutans.
Lavatera arborea. Holcus lanatus.
Lotus corniculatus. Poa annua.
Crithmum maritimum, Sclerochloa loliacea.
Armeria maritima. Dactylis glomerata.
Plantago coronopus. Festuca rubra.
Chenopodium album.
One of the most noticeable points in the lists given above
is that the variety of the flora, by which I mean the number
of species that compose it, does not always bear anything like
a proportionate relation to the size of the islet on which
it occurs. In all cases it is impossible to guess beforehand
with any accuracy, at a distance of say a hundred yards, how
many different kinds of plants actually grow on any particular
one of these verdant spots. Some ‘of the smaller ones are
rich in species, while one or two, which in comparison may be
called large, are surprisingly poor. If this depended upon the
degree of exposure, or the distance from land, or the depth and
quality of the soil, one could account for these differences ;
but apparently it is not so.
Look at two of the islets that he off the north point of
(zuernsey, Houmet Benest and Houmet Homtolle. Both are
situated on the eastern side of the coast, and possess, roughly
speaking, about the same area of vegetation. Yet Houmet
48 THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS.
Benest produces more than four times as many plants as
Houmet Homtolle. Or take Burhou, an island of considerably
oreater land area than Lihou, but not yielding even one-fifth
of the number of s species. It is true that Lihou stands much
closer to Guernsey than Burhou does to Alderney, and moreover
has been inhabited by man from ancient times, but making
every allowance for introduced plants, and having regard
simply to species which are truly indigenous, there is no com-
parison between the two islands from a botanical point of view.
The singular absence of certain common shore plants from
particular islets is a curious circumstance which it is not easy
to account for. Samphire, for example, is one of our typical
maritime plants, growing in profusion on every rocky cliffside
and sandy shore throughout the Channel Islands. But it
does not occur at all either on Houmet Homtolle or on
Plat Houmet, and it is exceedingly scarce on Galeux and
Longue Pierre. The large and important order of Composite
appears to be always scantily represented or even wanting
altogether on very small islets. There are no plants at all be-
longing to this order on Plat Houmet, Longue Pierre, or
Behan: ; and five years ago when I went ‘to Galeux there was
but one single plant on the islet, a fine vigorous specimen of
Sonchus oleraceus, flowering abundantly. I have often won-
dered since then whether this species had succeded in securing
a permanent footing in its windswept rocky home. :
Take another instance of restricted distribution. The
common Bracken Fern grows in the greatest profusion over a_
large portion of Ekoumes Paradis, yet strange to say, not a
single frond of it is to be found on either of its sister
islets, Houmet Benest and Houmet Homtolle, which lie on the
right and left only a few hundred yards away. For ages
past every autumnal gale that has swept over this region must
have carried across to these two islets clouds of spores, for this
fern is abundant on the adjacent coast of Guernsey as well as
on the central islet, and yet they have not been able to find
there the conditions required for their germination and
development.
But the most remarkable instance of absentee plants is
met with in the comparatively large island of Burhou. _ The
whole of it is so plentifully stocked with herbage that when
seen from the heights of Alderney on a clear summer morning
it may be accurately described as an emerald isle set in
sapphire sea. Therefore it is all the more extraordinary
that throughout its entire length and breadth there should not
be found the smallest vestige of such abundant and universally
THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS. 49
distributed shore plants as Armeria, or Plantago, or Beta, or
Daucus, or Lotus, or a single composite plant of any kind.
But more astonishing still is the total absence of the ubiqui-
tous tribe of Grasses, for which I made a fruitless search
during my repeated visits. And yet there are over twenty
different species of this order which are quite plentiful on that
portion of the coast of Alderney which directly faces this
barren islet, so that seeds in abundance cannot fail to be
blown across during the prevalence of strong easterly and
south-easterly winds. Owing to its deficiencies Burhou is, in
my opinion, by far the most remarkable of all the Channel
Islands.
Some years ago Mr. Lester-Garland, of Jersey, favoured
me with a list of the flowering plants he had observed on the
Ecrehos Rocks ; a reef situated midway between Jersey and
France. I cannot speak of these solitary islets from personal
knowledge as I never landed there, but I have passed close by
on the way from Carteret to Jersey. The group includes
three main islands, of which the largest is about two-thirds of
a mile long and a quarter of a mile wide ; the second is about
one-fourth less in size, and the third smaller but loftier.
Except for the occurrence of an Orchis, and also of Chero-
phyllum sylvestris, a rare plant in all this region except
Alderney, there is nothing specially noteworthy about the
flora of this detached group of rocks.
Mr. Lester-Garland describes these as forming
Hicrehos Rocks. “a long reef lying midway between the north-
east corner of Jersey and the coast of France, about eight miles distant
from each. They run nearly N. and S. and the whole group is about
two miles in length. At high water there are three islets: the largest,
which is known as Maitre Ile, contains the remains of old monastic
buildings and disused fishermen’s huts, and the other two which are
connected at low water by a beach of shingle, possess a cottage and
several huts which are inhabited by fishermen during the summer.”
Mr. Lester-Garland goes on to say: “The traces of ancient cultivation
interested me greatly. My present list is certainly not exhaustive; a
visit at a different time of the year (I went in June) would probably
produce many other species.”
Sinapis arvensis. Rubus sp.
Cochlearia danica. Sedum anglicum.
Capsella Bursa-pastoris. Cotyledon umbilicus.
Silene maritima. Crithmum maritimum.
Sagina apetala. Cheerophyllum sylvestre.
Cerastium tetrandrum. Carduus tenuiflorus.
Lepigonum rupestre. lanceolatus.
Lavatera arborea. Taraxacum officinale.
Trifolium arvense. Sonchus oleraceus.
procumbens. asper.
Lotus hispidus. arvensis.
Vicia angustifolia, Erythrea centaurium.
D
50 THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS.
Myosotis collina. Tris foetidissima.
Anagallis arvensis. Scilla autumnalis.
Armeria maritima. Juncus maritimus.
Plantago coronopus Luzula sp. (leaves).
lanceolata. Carex arenaria.
Beta maritima. Holcus lanatus.
Atriplex hastata. Dactylis glomerata.
Rumex crispus. Festuca ovina.
Euphorbia Helioscopia. rubra.
portlandica. Lolium perenne.
Orchis sp. (leaves).
In speaking of the Channel Islands one is very apt
to lose sight of a group of small islets which geographically
form part of the main archipelago, although by a strange
anomaly they appertain, not to England, but to another
country: I refer to the Chausey Islands, which belong
to France. They are not perhaps of much importance
politically or commercially, but from a botanical point of view
they should not be disregarded when treating of the Channel
Islands as a whole. It will not be inappropriate therefore to
conclude this paper with a list of the plants which have been
noted for the Chausey Islands by two competent and reliable
observers: first, a French botanist, Monsieur Louis Crié,
Professor at the College of Rennes, who published in 1877
“Un Essai sur la végétation de lArchipel Chausey,” and
secondly, my venerable friend Mr. John Piquet, the well-
known Jersey botanist, who in company with his son, Mr.
F. G. Piquet, paid three visits to the islands during 1903 and
1904 for the purpose of studying the flora. I am indebted to
Mr. Piquet for kindly sending me a copy of his list, which I
believe has not hitherto been published.
In the following pages Mons. Crié’s list is given intact,
and the additions made to it by Mr. Piquet are distinguished
by a star. It will be seen that the flora of these rocky islets
is a very rich and varied one, comprising about 275 flowering
plants and ferns. It gives me pleasure to be able to furnish
such a list for our Transactions, because so far as I am aware,
nothing approaching so comprehensive a catalogue of Chausey
plants has ever yet appeared in any English publication.
This little archipelago consists of a number of
Chausey Islands. rocks and ects apiaad over an area of about
seven miles by five. It is situated at a distance of some twenty-five
miles south-east of Jersey, and nine miles from Granville. The largest
and most important island of the group, called La Grande Ile, is of
very irregular shape and measures a mile or so in length, and not more
than a quarter of a mile in its greatest width. A certain amount of
land is under cultivation, but the greater portion of the island is wild
and rocky. Formerly the population was much larger than it is now;
at the present day there are hardly more than fifty permanent inhabi-
tants, but the number is much increased during the summer season.
THE VEGETATION
Papaver Rhooas.*
Glaucium luteum.
Fumaria Borei.*
Sinapis arvensis.*
Diplotaxis tenuifolia.
Alyssum maritimum.
Cochlearia danica.
Lepidium Smithii.
Capsella Bursa-pastoris.*
Senebiera coronopus.
didyma.
Cakile maritima.
Crambe maritima.
Raphanus Raphanistrum.*
maritimus.
Reseda Luteola.
Silene nutans.
maritima.
Sagina procumbens.
maritima.
subulata.
Honkeneja peploides.
Polycarpon tetraphyllum.
Lepigonum rupestre.
Scleranthus annuus.*
Malva moschata.
sylvestris.*
rotundifolia.
Lavatera arborea.
Hypericum perforatum.*
linarifolium.
pulchrum.*
Acer Pseudo-platanus.*
Geranium sanguineum.
molle.*
rotundifolium.
Robertianum.*
Erodium cicutarium.
malacoides, Willd.
maritimum.
Linum catharticum.
Ulex europzeus.
nanus.
Galil.
Sarothamnus scoparius.*
Medicago sativa.*
lupulina.*
Trifolium pratense.*
arvense.
repens.*
fragiferum.*
procumbens.*
filiforme.*
Lotus corniculatus.
major.*
angustissimus.
hispidus.
Vicia angustifolia.*
Prunus spinosa.
Potentilla argentea.
SMALL ISLETS.
Potentilla Tormentilla.*
Rubus sp.
Rosa spinosissima.
Tamarix anglica.*
Sedum album.
anglicum.
acre.
sexangulare.
Cotyledon umbilicus.*
Saxifraga tridactylites.
Eryngium maritimum.
campestre.
Petroselinum sativum.
/Kgopodium Podagraria.*
(inanthe Lachenalii.*
/Kithusa cynapium.
Feniculum officinale.*
Crithmum maritimum.
Daucus gummifer.
Scandix Pecten-veneris.
Conium maculatum.
Smyrnium olusatrum.
Hedera Helix.
Sambucus nigra.*
Lonicera Periclymenum.
Galium mollugo.
verum.
Rubia peregrina.
Centranthus ruber.*
Dipsacus sylvestris.
Petasites fragrans.
Erigeron acre.
— canadense.
Bellis perennis.*
Inula conyza.
Filago germanica.*
Achillea millefolium.
Anthemis cotula.
Matyricaria inodora.
(maritima),
Senecio vulgaris.
Jacobeea.
Carlina vulgaris.
Centaurea nigra.
Calcitrapa.
Onopordum Acanthium.
Carduus tenuiflorus.
lanceolatus.*
Silybum Marianum.
Hypocheoeris radicata.
Leontodon hispidum.
autumnale.*
Picris hieracioides.*
Helminthia echioides.*
Taraxacum officinale.
Sonchus oleraceus.
asper.*
Crepis virens.*
Hieracium Pilosella.
umbellatum.*
51
Or
THE VEGETATION
Jasione montana
Calluna vulgaris.
Erica cinerea.
vagans.
Ligustrum vulgare.
Fraxinus excelsior.*
Vinca major.
Erythrea centaurium.
Convolvulus arvensis.
sepium .*
soldanella.*
Cuscuta epithymum.
Cynoglossum officinale.
Borago officinalis.
Anchusa sempervirens.*
Lycopsis arvensis.
Echium vulgare.
plantagineum.*
Lithospermum arvense.
Myosotis collina.
Solanum nigrum.
Atropa Belladonna.
Hyoscyamus niger.
Datura stramonium.
Orobanche amethystea.*
Verbascum Thapsus.
nigrum.*
Blattaria.
Digitalis purpurea.
Antirrhinum Orontium.
Linaria vulgaris.
Scrophularia scorodonia.
Euphrasia officinalis.
Veronica arvensis.
agrestis.
Buxbaumii.
hederifolia.
Mentha rotundifolia.
alopecuroides.*
Salvia Verbenaca.
Thymus serpyllum.
Calamintha clinopodium.
Melissa officinalis.
Prunella vulgaris.
Nepeta Glechoma.
Lamium amplexicaule.
purpureum.
Leonurus cardiaca.
Stachys Betonica.
sylvatica.
arvensis. -
Ballota foetida.*
Marrubium vulgare.
Teucrium scorodonia.
Verbena officinalis.
Glaux maritima.
Anagallis arvensis.
Samolus Valerandi.*
Statice Limonium.
occidentalis.
OF SMALL ISLETS.
Statice Dodartii.
lychnidifolia,
Armeria maritima.
Plantago coronopus.
maritima.
lanceolata.
major.
Euxolus viridis.
Sueeda fruticosa.
maritima.
Chenopodium Vulvaria.
album.
murale.
glaucum.
Beta maritima.
Salicornia fruticosa.
herbacea.
Atriplex littoralis.
patula.
hastata.
Obione portulacoides.*
Rumex conglomeratus.
acutus.*
crispus.*
acetosa.
acetosella.*
Polygonum Persicaria.
Hydropiper.
aviculare.
maritimum.
Euphorbia Peplis.
Helioscopia.
amygdaloides.
Paralias.
portlandica.
Peplus.
Mercurialis annua.*
Urtica urens.
dioica.
Ulmus campestris.*
Salix vitellina.
cinerea.
Populus tremula.
Fagus sylvatica.*
Corylus avellana.
Orchis mascula.
Spiranthes autumnalis.
Iris fcetidissima.
Triglochin maritimum.*
Ruscus aculeatus.*
Scilla autumnalis.
Allium vineale.
Endymion nutans.
Juncus maritimus.
glaucus.
Gerardi.
bufonius.
Arum maculatum.
Lemna minor,
Zostera marina.
THE VEGETATION OF SMALL ISLETS. 53
Zostera nana. Dactylis glomerata.
Scirpus Rothii, Hoppe. Bromus sterilis.
Savii. Serrafalcus mollis.
Carex arenaria. hordeaceus.
preecox. Triticum repens.
glauca. junceum.
Mibora minima. Elymus arenarius.
Anthoxanthum odoratum. Hordeum murinum.
Alopecurus pratensis. maritimum.
agrestis. Lepturus incurvatus.
Psamma arenaria. Lolium perenne.
Agrostis vulgaris.* Polypodium vulgare.*
Holcus lanatus. Lastrea Filix-mas
Poa annua.* Asplenium Adiantum-nigrum.*
trivialis. Trichomanes.
pratensis. marinum.
Sclerochloa loliacea. Pteris aquilina.
Cynosurus cristatus.
ADDITIONS TO THE INSECTS OF SARK.
BY W. A. LUFF, F.E.S.
0
THE following insects were captured in Sark by Mr.
EK. D. Marquand, A.L.S., and his young son, from April
20th to 27th of this year, and are additions to the list I
published in these V’ransactions in 1906.
Four specimens of Carabus nemoralis were found crushed
on the footpaths in the early mornings. It is a large species
which has not been found in Guernsey or Alderney, nor is
it recorded for Jersey. One specimen of the large black
burying beetle, \Vecrophorus humator, was picked up crushed,
near the school house. This species does not occur in Guern-
sey, but several specimens were taken in Alderney some years
ago. Halyzia sedecimpunctata, a conspicuous little beetle,
was beaten out of bushes in Dixcart Valley by Master Cecil
Marquand. This species is quite new to the Channel Islands.
A very pretty Cassida (C. oblonga) was beaten out of hedges
at the Seigneurie. This is also new to the Channel Island
list.
Highty-two species are now for the first time recorded
for Sark, and therefore the list is rendered much more
complete. Up to the present no collecting had been done
in Sark during the early months of spring and summer,
and if regular work could be carried out throughout the
year, in the same way as. was done in Alderney, I have
no doubt many interesting discoveries would be made.
COLEOPTERA.
GEODEPHAGA.
Carabus nemoralis, Muli. Four specimens picked up crushed on foot-
paths. This species is evidently not rare in Sark.
Nebria brevicollis, #. Two specimens.
Pterostichus cupreus, LZ. Three.
Amara continua, Zhoms. One.
A. similata, Gyll. Two.
Bembidium lampros, Herbst.
Dromius linearis, 0/7. Common.
D. melanocephalus, De.
[1909.]
ADDITIONS TO SARK INSECTS. 58)
PALPICORNIA.
Hydrobius fuscipes, Z.
BRACHELYTRA.
Astilbus canaliculatus, F.
Leistotrophus murinus, Z. Two.
Philonthus trossulus, Nord.
Stenus annulatus, Crotch.
S. brunnipes, Steph.
Philorhinum humile, Zr.
CLAVICORNIA.
Neerophorus humator, F. One crushed specimen picked up on a foot-
path near the Schoolhouse,
Halyzia sedecimpunctata, Z. One beaten out of bushes by Master
C. Marquand in Dixcart Valley.
Omosita discoidea, F. Plentiful on old bones in two or three places.
Cryptophagus lyeoperdi, Herds.
Mierambe vini, Panz.
LAMELLICORNIA.
Onthophagus fracticornis, Preyss.
Aphodius inquinatus, F.
A. punctato-suleatus, Stn.
A. pusillus, Herbst.
Geotrupes typhus, Z.
G. stercorarius, LZ.
G. vernalis, Z.
STERNOXI.
Agriotes pallidulus, J7/.
Athous hemorrhoidalis, F.
PHYTOPHAGA.
Cassida oblonga, J/7. Three specimens beaten out of a hedge at the
Seigneurie.
C. hemispheeriea, Herbst. One captured in Sark by Mr. George Derrick.
HETEROMERA.
Opatrum sabulosum, Gy/7. Common under stones at the Eperquerie.
Meloe brevicollis, Panz.
M. proscarabeeus, ZL.
RHYNCHOPHORA.
Apion striatum, Kirby.
A. trifolii, Z.
A. nigritarse, Kirdy.
Sitones tibialis, Herdst.
S. suleifrons, Zhwmbd.
Otiorrhynechus atroapterus, De G.
Phyllobius pyri, Z.
Hypera plantaginis, De G.
56 ADDITIONS TO SARK INSECTS.
HYMENOPTERA.
HETEROGYNA.
Lasius flavus, De G. Common.
L. niger, race alienus, Forst. Common.
Leptothorax tuberum, race Nylanderi, Férst. One specimen of this
minute species taken at the Seigneurie.
ANTHOPHILA.
Halictus albipes, Hird.
H. punctatissimus, Sché
Andrena thoraciea, F.
A. cineraria, ZL.
A. Gwynana, Xird.
A. angustior, Zird.
A. rose (trimmerana), ird.
A. fulva, Sehr.
Nomada suceineta, 2.
N. rvuficornis, Z.
ICHNEUMONIDZ.
Phzogenes optalmicus.
Microeryptus abdominator, Gra.
Pezomachus modestus, Lors¢.
P. cautus, Férst.
Spiloeryptus abbreviator, Fuad.
Pimpla instigator, Fad.
P. turionelle, Fad.
Panisecus ocellaris, Zhoms.
Pyeno-cryptus peregrinator.
BRACONIDZ.
Rhogas eireumseriptus, Nees.
TENTHREDINE.
Tenthredopsis coqueberta.
Dolerus gonogra.
HEMIPTERA-HETEROPTERA.
Pentatoma vernalis.
Berytus minor, Sci/.
Henestaris laticeps, Curt.
Ichno-coris angustulus, Joh.
Stygnus fuligineus.
Peritrechus luniger, Schiil.
Aphanus quadratus, fad.
Nabis dorsalis, D. § C@.
Lygus pratensis, Fad.
Velia eurrens, fad.
ADDITIONS TO SARK INSECTS.
DIPTERA.
Ptyechoptera albimans.
Limnobia nubeculosa.
Empis livida, L.
Seatophaga lutaria, L.
Anthomyia pluvialis, L.
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.*
BY LIEUT.-COLONEL T. W. M. DE GUERIN.
Tue history of feudalism in Guernsey begins early in the
11th century, at which date we find the island divided into
two great fiefs; one held by Nigel, Vicomte du Cotentin,
comprising the parishes of St. Peter-Port, St. Sampson’s, St.
Martin’s, the Forest, St. Andrew’s and Torteval; and the
other consisting of the parishes of the Vale, the Castel, St.
Saviour’s and St. Peter-in-the-Wood, held by Anchetil,
Vicomte du Bessin.
For some cause unknown to us Duke Robert of Nor-
mandy deprived the Vicomte du Bessin of his lands in
Guernsey, and gave them, along with certain dues called
“melagia,’ on the other portion of the island, held by Nigel,
Vicomte du Cotentin, to the famous Abbey of Mont Saint
Michel by charter sometime between the years 1028 and
1034.f These lands did not long remain in the possession of
the Abbey at this period, for William the Conqueror by a
charter of about the year 1042{ restored them to Ranulph,
Vicomte du Bessin, son of Anchetil, and gave the Abbey the
islands of Alderney and Serk in exchange. Sometime later
Mont Saint Michel again became possessed of one-half of the
Guernsey fief of the Vicomtes du Bessin, but no record exists
to show how this came about.
Nigel II., Vicomte du Cotentin, son of the above men-
tioned Nigel, was one of the chiefs of the conspiracy against
William the Conqueror, which was crushed at the famous
battle of Val es Dunes. He escaped from the battle field,
and took refuge in Brittany, and his fief in tuernsey was
forfeited, and the advowsons of his six parishes, and two
carucates of land, were given by the Conqueror to the great
Abbey of Marmoutier, near Tours. Nigel received pardon
some years later, and by several charters he and his children
confirmed to the Abbey the gifts made by Duke William.
* Lecture deiivered in the Ladies’ College, February 25th, 1909.
t+ Calendar of Documents in France. H. Round, p. 251.
{ Calendar of Documents in France. H. Round, p, 281.
[1909.]
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 59
Some writers have supposed that Nigel never recovered
possession of his lands in Guernsey, but this is not correct,
as we find another Nigel, his son or grandson, confirming,
about 1090, certain gifts made by his tenants in Guernsey to
the Abbey of St. Sauveur-le-Vicomte, Normandy, which had
been founded by the Vicomtes du Cotentin under the shadow
of their great castle. It is therefore probable that the
Vicomtes du Cotentin continued in peaceful possession of
their Guernsey manors until the commencement of the reign
of Stephen.
The Vicomtes du Bessin also remained in possession of
their portion of the island down to the same period, for a Bull
of Pope Alexander, dated 1178, mentions the churches, lands,
etc., belonging to the Abbey of Mont St. Michel, in Guernsey,
including certain dues (called melagia) on the lands of Karl
Ranulph (“ terra comitis Ranulphi”’) showing that Ranulph IL.,
Vicomte du Bessin, was still possessed of them after he had
been created Karl of Chester by Henry I. in 1120, and though
in 1178 he had long been dead, and his Guernsey lands had
been in other hands for two generations, yet the name “terra
comitis Ranulphi” still clung to his fief, and still clings to
that portion of it known to us as “le fief du Comte.”
Up to the end of the reign of Henry I. we find only two
great lay fiefs existing in Guernsey, out of which two eccle-
siastical fiefs had been dismembered by William the Conqueror,
those of the Abbeys of Mont St. Michel, and Marmoutier.
We may here glance at the condition of the island at
this period. The population must have been small and chiefly
engaged in fishing, the chief industry and wealth of the
people during the next two centuries. The town, if it yet
existed, can only have consisted of a few houses straggling
along the sea shore. Our parishes known by their present
names already existed early in the century. The Duke of
Normandy owned no lands in the island, which was divided,
as we have seen, into two great fiefs, but these were already
subdivided into arrear fiefs held by persons of sufficient wealth
to make considerable gifts to religious establishments in
Normandy. Some of these seigneurs may have been resident
in the island, but the bulk of them were owners of property,
and lived in Normandy.
Our two viscounts were the representatives of a class of
hereditary officials possessed of great powers. When the
Normans overran Neustria in the tenth century, they con-
formed to the Frankish administration they found already in
existence, and mapped out their new domain into counties
60 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
and viscounties, the latter granted to prominent chiefs of the
Norman host. These viscounts, if not from the first here-
ditary, soon became so, and by the eleveuth century were the
representatives of the duke in the provinces committed to
their charge. To them the abbots and bishops looked for
help from the oppressions of the barons. We have no reason
to suppose that the administrative and judicial powers of our
two viscounts over the tenants of their fiefs in Guernsey were
not as full and complete as those they possessed on the main
land. Their courts, composed as were similar feudal courts
in Normandy, of a seneschal or bailli, sitting as president,
with their suitors or chief tenants, as judges, would have
judged all causes of their tenants, have held pleas of the
sword as well as pleas of land and chattels.* The few cases
reserved for the duke’s judgment would not have been suffi-
cient to warrant the assumption that anything approaching a
permanent local ducal court was in existence in the island at
this period. Assault iu the duke’s court, or on the way to or
from it, offences committed in the host, or within a week or
its setting forth or its return, offences against pilgrims, and
violations of coinage, being the only causes reserved for the
duke’s judgment by the “ Consuetudines et Justi” of William
the Conqueror 1091.
The reign of Stephen probably ushered in a new era of
our history. Stephen was the chosen king of both the
English and Norman barons who hated the Angevin Geoffrey.
The lattev’s first attempt to conquer Normandy, to establish
his wife Matilda’s claims, failed conspicuously, and it required
two years of Stephen’s mis-rule to pave the way for his second
and successful attempt in 1138. Both our overlords were
partisans of Stephen. Ranulph, Earl of Chester, was a
strong supporter of his up to 1140, though he afterwards
changed sides frequently during the civil wars, as occasions
offered for his own advantage. Roger, Vicomte du Cotentin,
was one of Stephen’s justiciars, and chief supporters in
Normandy, and was killed in an ambuscade by the partisans
of Geoffrey of Anjou, in 1138. The result when Geoffrey
became master of our island must have been the forfeiture
of their fiefs, which probably may account for the altered
condition of the island when we next hear of it under
Henry II.
* Pollock & Maitland’s History of English Law, Vol. 72, and F. M.
Powiche’s Angevin Administration of Normandy. ON ish: Ferien Review,
October, 1906, pp. 635-645-647.
+ Hnglish Historical Review, July 1908, p. 503.
ra SACS Consuetudines et Justii of William the Conqueror, Professor C.
askins
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 61
We have no documentary evidence af these forfeitures,
but about the year 1168 we find that the Fief du Comte had
passed from the Earls of Chester and had already been for
two generations in the hands of the Wakes, for at that date
Hugh Wake gives to the Abbey of Longues, which he had
recently founded in Normandy, certain lands, on his fief i in
Guernsey, still called “ Le Fief de Longues,” at St. Saviour’s,
formerly belonging to his father, Geoffrey Wake, a contem-
porary of Stephen. Roger, Vicomte du Cotentin, left no
descendants, and his vast possessions in Normandy went to
his niece Letitia, wife of Ralph Tesson. The viscountship of
the Cotentin, however, remained escheated to the Crown.
Letitia seems to have possessed some lands in Guernsey, pro-
bably those of the demesne lands of the viscounts, but she is
only mentioned in connection with the island in one charter
whereby she confirms, as overlord, the gift made by Robert
Le Boutillier to the Abbey of Marmoutier of certain lands
that he held on her fief.
From the charters of the Norman abbeys of the twelfth
century, and the Extente of 1274, which mentions many of
the lands forfeited in the reign of King John, we get an idea
of the feudal holdings in Guernsey previous to the separation
of Normandy. We find the island was divided at the end of
the 12th century into a nnmber of fiefs mostly held by the
great Norman families of the Cotentin. The fief of the
Vicomtes du Bessin was divided between the Wakes, Seig-
neurs of Fief du Comte, and the Abbey of Mont Saint
Michel. These held the two largest manors in the island,
and of them, Roger Suhart, member of an important family
of the Bessin, held the Fief Suhart in the Castel and St.
eer becin-the- Wood, and Robert Legat, another large fief at
the Vale. ‘The remainder of the island, representing the old
fief of the Vicomtes du Cotentin, was also divided into a
number of small manors. Of these, the Sires du Rosel held
the Fief Rosel at St. Peter-Port ; the Seigneurs of Anneville
en Saire held the Fiefs of Anneville and Foville at St. Samp-
son’s, which had probably been in their possession for three
generations, as they were forfeited, in the reign of King John,
by two cousins, John and Sampson a’ Anneville ; De Le
Boutilliers held manors at St. Martin’s and St. Andrew’s ; the
de Barnevilles, descendants of the Sires de Rosel, seam to
have held the Fief of Jerbourg, now known as Sausmarez
Manor, and another member of the same family, Robert
Mauvoisin de Rosel, held the Fief of Mauvoisin, at St.
Saviour’s, which he gave to the Abbey of Blanchelande ;
62 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
Richard de Martinvast held the Fief of Beggeville at Torteval,
and the Le Canellys were probably already possessed of the
Fief au Canelly, which straggles over part of Torteval, St.
Peter’s-in-the-W ood and St. Saviour’s. Serk belonged to the
de Vernons, and was given about the middle of the twelfth
century by William de Vernon, Baron of Nehou, to the Abbey
of Montebourg, whilst Alderney belonged to the l Enginours,
one of whom, William I’Enginour, Lord of Alderney, gave
part of the island to the Abbey of Notre Dame du Veeu,
Cherbourg, in 1184. The bulk of these Seigneurs were great
landowners in Normandy, therefore we must suppose it was
the importance of our fisheries that caused our lands to be so
much sought after, as the possession of a fishery was a valu-
able asset in those days.
The manors in the possession of the Church had also
ereatly increased in numbers.
The Abbey of Marmoutier les Tours held a large fief
stretching over part of St. Peter-Port and St. Martin’s, now
merged in the “ Fief le Roi,” but for lack of documents it is
at present impossible to locate its position.
The Abbey of Mont Saint Michel held nearly one-fourth
of this island, consisting of the fiefs of Saint Michel, Lihou,
etc., strageling over part of the Vale, the Castel, St. Saviour’s
and St. Peter’s-in-the-W ood.
The Abbey of La Trinité, Caen, held the Fief of ?Abesse
de Caen at St. Andrew’s.
The Abbey of Cormery, near Tours, held the Fief of
Sainte Heléne, and probably also that of La Haule at St.
Andrew’s.*
The Abbey of La Croix St. Leufroy, near Evreux,
held the Fief of La Refrerie, at St. Andrew’s, now corruptly
called “ La Rue Frairie.”
The Abbey of St. Sauveur-le-Vicomte also held a fief at
St. Andrew’s, of which the Franc-fief de St. Sauveur is a
portion.
The Abbey of Longues held the Fief de Longues at
St. Saviour’s.
The Abbey of Blanchelande held the Fief of Martinvast
at St. Martin’s, now known as Blanchelande, which had ori-
ginally belonged to the canons of Cherbourg, who were
dispossessed of it by King John, who gave it to Blanche-
lande.
* Cal. Pat. Rolls, 20 Edw. I., p. 486, April 24, 1292. Ratification by Edward I. of
the sale by the Abbot and Convent of Cormery to Master William de Sancto
pee of their lands and rents in Guernsey belonging to the priory of St. Elena
in Hagna.
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 63
Lastly, the Bishop of Coutances held a fief at St.
Andrew’s, still called the Fief L’Kveque.
At the end of the 12th century we also find the first
record of the existence of a local Ducal Court in Guernsey.
When such a court was first established in the island it is
impossible to say. It may date from as early as the reign of
Henry I. for it is now being recognised that the bulk of the
administrative and judicial reforms which were formerly attri-
buted to Henry II., had not only their origin but were fully
developed under Henry I.* To his reign is now attributed
the creation of the Norman Exchequer, with its permanent
judicial officers, who not only sat as the judges of the supreme
Ducal Court, but were also employed as justices to hold pleas
throughout the duchy. Besides these permanent local courts,
with restricted jurisdiction, under ducal justices, were already
established throughout the duchy to keep in check the oppres-
sions of the barons and viscomtes. f
It is in the great Roll of the Norman Exchequer of 1180
that we get the first glimpse of the existence of such a local
court in Guernsey, a court under the presidency of a royal
officer, who would have executed justice by judgment of the
chief tenants, the suitors of the duke’s court, whom we still
summon three times a year at our Court of Chief Pleas. For
at this period in the local courts of the viscounts and baillis
in Normandy, and in those of the sheriffs in Mngland, judgment
was given by the knights who held lands by suit of court in
the district, in other words who owed the service of executing
the king’s justice.
The jurisdiction of our court must undoubtedly have been
much more restricted at this period than we find it after the
alterations made in our constitution by King John. Already
the system of assizes, which Henry II. had re-instituted early
in his reign in Normandy, had been extended to our islands,
for in the Great Roll of 1180 we find Ralph de Havilland, the
deputy of Gislebert de la Hougue, the fermor of Guernsey,
accounting for £37 19s. 6d., the fines imposed at the last
pleas or assizes. Further, he had been president of the local
Ducal Court and, as such, had been fined by the justices £40
for being present and assisting in compounding a felony
of maiming. In other words for allowing the court to exceed
its jurisdiction, as maiming was one of the cases reserved
for the duke’s judgment at this period. This last entry
proving the existence of a local court in the island.
* See Administration of Normandy under Henry I., by Professor C. H. Haskin,
p. 209-232, English Historical Review. 1909.
E t Do., do., pp. 220-221.
64 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
The assizes at this period were the supreme court of
the king, travelling throughout the land executing justice
in the king’s name to all and sundry. They were held
by royally appointed officers, either members of the Ex-
chequer or great barons of the king’s council, and when
they sat all local courts in the neighbourhood were closed,
whether those of the vicomtes and baillis, or of the feudal
seigneurs, and all had to come to the king’s court for justice.
But the justices’ commission did not end with the adminis-
tration of justice, they had also to enquire into the whole
administration of the district since the preceding assizes, who
of the tenants in chief had died during the interval, who
had been enfeoffed with new lands, so that the king might
claim his dues, what crimes had been committed and by whom,
what had become of the chattels of the felon, and what punish-
ment if any had been inflicted. These enquiries had to be
answered by the juries, twelve men, chosen from each of the
divisions of the district. The whole of the fines inflicted by
the justices had to be accounted for to the Exchequer by
the fermor or bailli, over and above the sum that he owed for
the ferm of his bailiwick, and he or his deputy was subject to
a heavy fine if he had not administered justice rightly in the
court under his charge.
We thus see at the end of the twelfth century what
we may call political feudalism in the island being gradually
restricted. The seignorial courts being supervised by the
local ducal court and the latter by the justices of the assizes.
Still the government of the Isles was feudal, the knights
executed judgment under the duke’s officers, not because they
were chosen as the best fitted to do so, but because they held
their lands as suiters of his court, bound by the service
of performing his justice.”
It is rather difficult to say what were the powers of
the fermors of the Isles, whose names figure on the Great
Rolls of the Norman Exchequer, whether their functions only
consisted of receiving the revenue, of which the balance, if
any, went into their own pockets, after paying into the
Exchequer the sum due for their ferm ; or whether they also
acted as baillis responsible for the administration of justice
and for the order and safety of the portion of the duchy
committed to their charge ; as did the fermors of the baili-
wicks and viscounties on the mainland. Anyway they were
usually important barons or knights. The first we know of
was no less a personage than William de Courcy, “ dapifer ”
* See Pollock & Maitland’s History of English Law, pp. 538-550.
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 65
of the King of England, a favourite minister of Henry IL.,
who died in 1177. Then followed Gislebert de la Hougue in
1180 and lastly Robert de Saint Mére Eglise, in 1198, member
of an important family of the Contentin and near relative of
William de Saint Mére Eglise, Bishop of London.
On the loss of Normandy by King John many of the
owners of our manors adhered to Philip Augustus, and in con-
sequence lost their lands in the island. The principal fiefs
forfeited at this period were—Rosel, St. Peter-Port ; Anne-
ville, St. Sampson’s ; Suhart, Gare and St. Peter’ scimtes
Wood ; Lemminge, Fortescue, Vielesse, Buard, and Gorges,
St. Machin’ s; Beggeville, Torteval ; Legat, Vale, and several
small manors at St. Andrew's. The lands of all the Norman
abbeys were also forfeited for a time, and were only restored
about 1238, by Henry III.
If we ‘glance at the list of the Hcclesiastical and Lay
Seigneurs owing suit of court at the Chief Pleas of the Royal
Court at a later period, who, as we have seen were the judges
of our early local court, we vet an idea of the effect of these
forfeitures on its composition.
SEIGNEURS OWING SUIT OF CoURT.
Bishop of Coutances.
Abbot of Mont St. Michel.
of Marmoutier-lez-Tours.
of Blanchelande.
of La Rue Frairie (de Longues).
of La Croix St. Leufroy.
Abbess of La Trinité Caen.
Seigneur d’Anneville (lands forfeited ).
de Sausmarez, St. Martin’s.
des Bruniaux, St. Martin’s.
des Mauxmarquis (lands forfeited).
des Bruniaux de Nermont (not yet in existence).
- de Vaugrat.
5 des Philippes.
3 au Canelly.
Rf de Fantome.
Ss des Rohais.
Of these seigneurs, no less than nine for certain were
deprived of their lands by King John. The judges of the
king’s court were thus reduced by more than half their
number to seven or eight at most, that 1s supposing that all
the smaller fiefs now owing suit of court were then in
existence, of which we have no proof. This number would
E
Lands forfeited on
account of war.
66 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
have been too small to carry on the business of the court, and
probably was one of the reasons leading to King John’s
alterations in our constitution by the institution of a bench of
twelve jurats, elected by the magnates of the island, under
the presidency of the Governor of the Isles, or his heutenant,
to replace the feudal judges holding their lands by service of
suit of court. Another factor leading to this cha ge was
undoubtedly the danger of leaving the administration of
justice entirely in the hands of the remaining chief feudal
tenants, many of whom had probably lost their lands in
Normandy, and who were connected by family ties with that
province.
Guernsey had also become of increased political value on
the loss of Normandy, from the importance of our roadstead
as a place of safety for vessels trading between England and
Gascony, for we must remember that ‘the ships of those days
were very small, without compasses, steered by the sun by day
or the stars by night; they rarely sailed far out to sea,
but coasted along from one port to another, making for the
nearest harbour of shelter on the approach of bad weather.
After the loss of Normandy had closed its ports to English
shipping, we became the first harbour of refuge after leaving
England on the trade route to Gascony.
It has been suggested by some writers that we were in
possession of special privileges before the reign of King John,
and in proof they have been pointed to “the existence of
similar customs to ours, such as the privilege of electing their
magistrates, possessed by several towns of Normandy ‘in the
time of Henry I1., and perhaps earlier. But they forget an
all-important difference. The towns possessing communes in
the twelfth century were the principal centres of trade in the
duchy, towns which may have had particular privileges of
jurisdiction, even from Frankish days, which only obtained
formal recognition at a later period; while we were only
a small rural district of no importance, until the loss of
Normandy brought into prominence the value of our roadstead
as a place of shelter on the trade route to Gascony. In
granting us the privilege of electing our judges, King nis
was following a policy already initiated by Henry If.
Normandy and Gascony, which he and his successors
developed most largely in the latter province. The granting
of communal privileges to localities situated, as we were, near
hostile frontiers, had for its object the creation of centres
bound to the king by these privileges of self-government,
centres whose interests formed a counterpoise to the power of
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 67
the feudal seigneurs of the districts, who more often than not
studied their own particular interests rather than those of the
State. Many of our privileges, which differ from the customs
of Normandy, bear such a marked resemblance to those
of many towns in Gascony, which owe their communes to the
early Plantaganet kings, that it is evident that they have a
common origin in the general policy of the English kings for
the government of their continental dominions after the loss
of Normandy.
With King John’s establishment of what, for want of a
better expression, we may call our “commune,” political
feudalism came to an end in Guernsey. True, the chief
tenants of the Crown still retained some share in the adminis-
tration of the island even at the time of the assizes in the
early part of the fourteenth century, but this share was con-
sultative only, and gradually even this was lost. It is an
instance of the continuity of our customs that to this day the
Abbots of ruined Norman Abbeys and the Seigneurs of the
principal manors in the island shonld still be summoned to
appear three times a year at our Court of Chief Pleas.
We must now turn from what may be called the political
side of feudalism in Guernsey to glance at the tenures of our
manors and then at the economical side of feudalism in the
island, the relations existing between the lord of the manor,
the owner of the soil, and his tenants. What first strikes one
is the marvellous vitality of the manorial system. Once
a manor always a manor. It matters not whether, as in
the case of many of our Guernsey fiefs, that a manor was
escheated to the Crown in the days of King John, or at
a much later period, it never loses its identity, is never merged
into one general royal fief, but preserves through all these
centuries its own individuality. It had its own court and
administration, and even to this day it is its ‘ douzaine,”
twelve sworn men, tenants of the manor, who draw up the
“extente,” or survey, of the holdings of the tenants.
There were two classes of manors in Guernsey, (1) those
held by military service, grand serjeantry or little serjeantry,
what are styled in France “ fiefs hauberts,” and “ fiefs nobles,”
and (2) those held by yearly rent or its equivalent, such as a
pair of spurs, &c., which may be compared with vavassories.
Fief du Comte, the largest in the island, was held in
1240, by Baldwin de Vere, of Hugh Wake, as half a knight’s
fee, and an annual rent of £6 sterling. Its Seigneur, Nicholas
de Chesney, claimed in 1309 the right of court of his tenants ;
one fourth of the wreck of the sea of the whole island,
68 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
except from the Abbot of Mont St. Michel’s manors of
the Clos du Vale, and Lihou, and from Matthew de
Saumarez’s fief of Jerbourg ; also the right of chase through-
out the whole island.
Sausmarez Manor, St. Martin’s, originally the Fief of
Jerbourg, was held by grand serjeantry of acting as the
third butler to the king whenever he should visit the island.
Undoubtedly this tenure places it in the first rank of Guernsey
manors, but why the seigneur was to act as third butler
is puzzling, for it is the only manor mentioned in the Extente
of 1331 as held by serjeantry of butlership. The seigneur
owed suit at the three Chief Pleas, and held the Castle of
Jerbourg, built on his lands, about 1327, by the people of the
island. This castle was granted to Matthew de Sausmarez by
Edward III., in 1330, on condition “that the men of the
commonalty of the said island shall be received there with
their goods and chattels in time of war.” *
He had also right of court for his tenants, held by his
vavassors under his prévot, ‘ who would execute his.justice for
him, and owed him certain spurs valued twelve sols tournois,”’
tas well as “wreck of the sea on his fief, free warren, right
of chase, and his windmill, to which his men ought to bring
timber and millstones at their own cost.”
The Fief of Anneville was held by petty serjeantry of
keeping the king’s prisoners convicted of minor. offences.
The seigneur owed suit of court at the Chief Pleas, and had
right of free warren by grant of Prince Edward (afterwards
Edward I.), 9 June, 1261.
The manors of Rohais and of La Refrerie at St.
Andrew’s, were also held by petty serjeantry of keeping the
king’s prisoners. The other military fiefs of Bruniaux, St.
Martin’s; Mauxmarquis, St. Andrew’s; Bruniaux de Ner-
mont, Vale; Vaugrat, des Philippes, Canelly and Fantome,
were held in common with the above by homage, relief and
suit of court, with right of court for their tenants and of
chase.
It is probable that most if not all of the military fiefs
had also the right of colombier, or the cherished privilege of
possessing a dovecot standing as an isolated tower. The
remains of two such buildings exist, one at Le Colombier,
Torteval, originally the dovecot of the Fief au Canelly, and
*TIn 1811, the Governor, Sir John Doyle, issued an order to Mr. Matthew de
Sausmarez, Seigneur of Sausmarez, saying that as he had been shown documents
proving that he was warden of the Castle of Jerbourg from the earliest times, he
should take command of the peninsula of Jerbourg in case of invasion.
+ Snecial Publication Société Jersiaise, 1902, pp. 91-94.
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 69
the other at Lihou, to the north of the ruins of the priory.
The sites of others are, however, indicated by such names as
Le Colombier, near Ronceval, St. Sampson’s, &c. Probably
also La Colombelle, near Les Ruettes Brayes, may owe its
name from being the site of one of the smaller dovecots which
the lesser seigneurs were permitted to have attached to their
farm buildings.
The administration of a feudal manor has been regarded
from two points; (1) the old view, which represented every-
thing feudal as a grinding tyranny, whether from the king as
supreme in the State, down to the lord of the manor ; (2) the
modern view, which sees the power both of king or baron
great, but not absolute. The king, the chief of cle State,
but regarded by his barons rather as chief among equals than
as a superior. As the barons of Aragon said to their king—
“We, each of whom is as good as you, all together better than
you.)
So the feudal baron ruled his estate as chief among his
principal tenants, who formed his court and administered
justice under his representative, the seneschal. This system
is clearly shown in the records of manor courts in England,
and by the old “ franchises” of our Guernsey Fief du Comte,
the earliest copy of which dates from 1406. Here we find
the seneschal, or president of the Manor Court, and the greffier,
or clerk, appointed by the Lord of the Manor. The eight
vavassors, or judges of the court, were the seigneurs of the
eight principal frank-fiefs of the manor, who held their land
by suit of court. By the sixteenth centurv only three of
these frank-fiefs retained hereditary seigneurs, namely those
of Du Groignet, Du Pignon, and De Carteret, the two first
held by the Le Marchants, and the latter by a Blondel.
These seigneurs served as vavassors either in person or by
deputy chosen by themselves, subject to the approval of the
Seigneur du Comte. The vavassors of the other five franc-
fiefs, De Longues, Des Reveaux, Du Videclin, Des Grantes,
and De La Court, were chosen by the lord of the manor,
and presented by him to take oath before the Manor Court.
They bore the title of seigneurs of the franc-fief they
represented whilst acting as vavassors.
The next important officer, the prévét or grangier of the
manor, whose duties in some measure corresponded with those
of the prévot or sheriff of the Royal Court, was curiously
chosen by the tenants of the thirty-two vellein bouvées
of the manor. Two of these bouvées in turn choosing
* Lord Acton’s Circle, p. 231.
70 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
the prévét for the year. That this rather important officer,
who also acted as receiver of the revenue of the manor,
should have been elected yearly by the vellein tenants
is a very interesting fact, one certainly quite contrary to
the generally conceived notions on feudalism. The same
custom prevailed in most of our Guernsey manors, with
the exception of that of La _ Rosiere, belonging to -the
Seigneur d’Anneville, of which the “ prévoté” was hereditary
in the family of Prey, who were considerable landowners near
“Les Grandes Capelles.”
There were also seven bordiers of Fief du Comte who
held their lands called “ bordages” by service of acting as
police officers to the court. They had to attend its sittings,
execute its orders, help the prevot in arresting tenants of
the manor, and taking them to prison; also in early times
they had to assist him in receiving from the hands of the
kine’s officers, felons, tenants of the manor condemned to
execution by the Royal Court, and hang them on the manorial
gallows, otherwise the king and not the lord of the manor,
got their escheats.
The court of Fief du Comte judged all minor cases of
disputes of the tenants of the manor concerning lands and
chattels. But there was appeal from its judgments to the
Royal Court. Some of the arrear fiefs of the manor, such
as de Longues and Groignet, had also their own manorial
courts. Of that of Fief de Longues we have most infor-
mation, and even in the seventeenth century we find records
of appeals from its judgments to the court of Fief le Comte.
We may picture to ourselves the weary length of a lawsuit
in those days, beginning in a lower manor court, then wending
its way through the chief court of the manor on to the Royal
Court for final decision.
The plea rolls of the court of Fief du Comte begin in
1479, and are perfect, with the exception of some few years
in the sixteenth century down to the suppression of the
judicial functions of the court in 1775. Unfortunately they
do not contain matters of such varied interest, throwing
light on the social condition of the people, as do similar
records in England. The court had little correctional power
over the tenants. Only very few cases of the exercise of this
power appear, chiefly referring to contempt of court, or
misconduct of officials. The ancient seal of the court still
exists. It represents a knight on foot in full plate armour
in the act of drawing his sword; the nimbus round his head
and the letters S.G. above his shoulders show that the figure
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. alk
is intended to represent St. Geerge. According to Sir Edgar
MacCulloch it “ dates from about the middle of the fifteenth —
century.” It was used to seal documents concerning sale
of land or records of judgments of the Court.*
The court of the Priory of St. Michel du Vale was the
largest feudal court in the island, and consisted of a Seneschal,
eleven Vavasseurs, 2 Greftier, six Bordiers and a Wand-
bearer. It was also the only other court im the island
possessing an official seal, which represents the Archangel
‘Michael trampling Satan under foot.T
Every other important fief in the island had also its
court, though with more restricted jurisdiction than the two
just mentioned. Most of them still hold their Courts of Chief
Pleas three times a year, but their functions are now confined
to calling over the roll of the tenants and receiving the chief
rents due to the seigneur. Their places of meeting early in
the nineteenth century are recorded by the late Mr. F.
C. Lukis, and are worth mentioning, as it is probable that
these were the traditional sites.
The Court of Fief du Comte was formerly held in
the Chapel of St. George. That of Anneville in the great
barn of the Manor House.
Sausmarez, St. Martin’s, in the quaint old lodge, or
Court House, bordering the high road, near the gateway
leading to the back of Manor House.
The Court of St. Michel was held sometimes in the
Vale Church, at others at “ LZ’ Abbaye ”—the old priory to the
south of the church—and sometimes in the cemetery of the
Castel Church, on a spot marked by some flat stones, under
the trees bordering the path to the north of the church.
The Court of Fief du Groignet was held in a large room
in the old Manor House, near the King’s Mills.
The Court of Fief de Longues at Le Haut, St. Saviour’s,
near the house of that name.
The Court of Fief Gaillard in the steep lane running to the
south of the cemetery of St. Saviour’s Church. The stone
seats for the seneschal and vavassors are still to be seen at the
foot of the flight of steps leading up to the cemetery. _
The Court of Fief des Gohiers, in “le champ de I’ Eglise,”’
near St. Saviour’s parish schools. The stone seats for the
seneschal and vavassors are still to be seen along the
hedge bordering the lane.
The Court of Fief de Beuval in the courtyard of Mr. Simon,
* Miss EK. F..Carey’s Channel Islands, p. 83.
7+ Miss H, F. Carey’s Channel Islands, p. 86,
Ke FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
des Sages, St. Peter’s-in-the-Wood. The stone seats for the
officials of this Court are also still in existence.
The Court of Fief de la Corvée in the court yard at the
farm of Le Pont, St. Pierre-du-Bois.
The Court of Fief de Suart in the lands of Le Long
Frie, St. Pierre-du-Bois.
The Court of Fief de Lihou in the court yard of Mr.
de Garis, Des Adams, St. Pierre-du-Bois.
The Court of Fief des Reveaux, in the high road near
Les Islets, St. Pierre-du-Bois.
The Court du Fief des Coltons in the court yard of the
farm at Le Grais.
The Court of Fief de St. Martin, alias de Calais,
alias de Fermain, was formerly held near the Town Church,
on a spot marked by a large stone, near le Pont Orson,
the bridge which used to span the mill stream.
It will be noticed that nearly all these courts were held
out of doors, as was very frequently the custom in the middle
ages. The Abbot of St. Alban’s, for instance, held his court
under the great ash tree at St. Alban’s in 1257.
Early in the sixteenth century the Royal Court was
already attempting to restrict the powers of the Manor Courts
by various ordonnances. In spite of these they still continued
to flourish up to the middle of the seventeenth century, after
which date they declined rapidly. The court of Fief du Comte
retained its jurisdiction up to 1775, when it was suppressed
by Bailiff Wilham Le Marchant. That of Fief St. Michel
was only abolished in 1861. These courts still exist in name,
their duties, and those of the other Manor Courts in the
island, now consisting merely of the appointment of officers
for the collection of the revenue due the seigneur, or on some
fiefs for the supervision of the streams, to see that the water
has free course.
Manors were usually divided into the demesne lands, and
the tenures. The demesne, the lands surrounding the Manor
House, kept by the seigneur for his own use. The tenures,
the lands held by the tenants. The latter, in Guernsey, were
usually divided into frank-fiefs, if the manor was a large one,
free tenements and villein “ bouvées.” At the present day
many of our manors are entirely held in tenures, the seigneur
owning no land, only receiving his seignorial dues from his
tenants.
The seigneurs of the frank-fiefs and the free tenants held
their lands by homage, relief, or one year’s revenue on
succession to them, and by suit at the Manorial Court at the
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 13
three Chief Pleas. They also paid dues called chef-rente or
“rente censicre,” but were free from all villein servitudes.
This suit of court is still demanded by the seigneurs of
our manors from their tenants, and if the latter fail to appear
they are subject to a fine, and if defaulters for more than
three years their lands may be seized by the seigneur. There
is nothing of the nature of homage in this attendance of the
tenants at the Manor Court. Homage was only done on
succession of a new seigneur to the fief or of a new tenant to
his lands and never more than once in either case. Suit to a
Manorial Court was exactly the same as suit to the King’s
Court. The principal suitors, the chief tenants of the
selgneur, were in early times the judges of the court, which
could not be held except the requisite number were present.
They were also required to attend for the equally important
purpose of giving the seneschal and court information of all
that had happened in the manor since the preceding Chief
Pleas.
The villein tenants did not formerly owe suit of court.
Besides chef rente they had to pay their seigneur tithes
of their crops, champart, the twelfth sheaf of their corn, or
the twelfth bundle of flax, “revart de champart,” on lands
uncultivated, “ poulage,” a couple of chickens for each house,
“pesnage,” for the right of running their pigs loose on
the manorial common, “moulage,” a tithe on their wheat
ground in the manorial mill, &c. They also owed a number
of personal services to their seigneur, which varied on
different manors. We hear little of these services on Fief
du Comte, only of the duties of the villeins in carrying
their corn rents to the manor corn stack, and covering and
watching it day and night until it was threshed and
garnered into the manor barn. On Fief Sausmarez, St.
Martin’s, we find numberless personal services demanded by
the lord of the manor from his tenants. The documents
which refer to these services are of 1330, Inquisition Post
Mortem, and two “ Lettres” under the seal of the island,
of 1390, and 1487. These give the fullest and most
valuable details we have of services due by villeins in the
island. From the deed of 1390 it would seem that most if not
all the holdings on this fief were villein. The tenants had to
carry their lord’s corn to Normandy, whenever required,
between Vauville and Mont St. Michel at their own cost, to
cart his wine and ale to the Manor House, give him one white
and one black loaf from every baking of bread, the half
of each fat beast or the quarter of each sheep they killed, and
74 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
a gallon of ale from each brewing. Also to provide him with
firewood and furze for the use of the Manor House, carry
their lord or his family to Jersey three times a year, receiving
for this the same payment “as given by our lord the king to
his tenants,” as well as to pay tithes of their fish, cart
the lord’s corn wherever ordered in the island, besides paying
other dues such as chef rente, chickens, loaves of bread, and
money rents. In return, the lord of the manor provided the
seneschal and vavassors for the Manor Court.
These services give us an idea of the different working
of two important Guernsey manors in feudal times. On
Kief du Comte, a large manor straggling over four parishes,
from St. Peter’s- ties Wood to the Vale, with no Manor
House attached to it, but consisting principally of frank-fiefs
and free holdings, with two compact groups of villein holdings,
the ‘ Trente-deux vilaine Bouvées,” at the Castel, and “ Les
Onze Bouvées Nord-Est,” at St. Saviour’s; the vellein tenants
only owed personal service to their lord in connection with the
collection and guarding the tithes of their corn and flax, until
such time as the grainger of the manor took charge of it.
On Sausmarez Manor, a smaller and compact estate, the
holdings were almost entirely villein, and held by a variety
of personal services. These services formed part of the rent
due by the tenants, and they provided the lord of the manor
with provisions for his household, and for the carriage of
his goods and produce. In neither case do we find any
provision for working the farm lands of the seigneur, which
in England always formed part of services of the villeins.
Already, by the end of the fifteenth century, these
personal services were found irksome, for the villein tenant
of one lord was frequently the free tenant of another, or
of the king, and often a large landowner. In 1480 we
find record of a dispute between the Seigneur of Saumarez
and one of his tenants, who had refused to cart “la feugere
du seigneur a son hostel,” and though the tenant was a
member of an important family, and a large landowner on
other fiefs, he was sentenced to “une journée au regard du
chateau.” We must hope that twenty-four hours’ contem-
plation of Castle Cornet brought him to a proper sense of
his duties.
We also find some tenants owing such rents as chickens
with tails an inch long, capons, geese from their ponds,
eels, eggs, and even congers. The latter seem to have been
looked upon as an important article of barter even down
to the beginning of the seventeenth century. So many
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. (5)
congers of good merchantable size often figure in the note
book of George Fashion, Seigneur d’Anneville, as part of
the rent due from the tenants of his farms. No doubt
they were salted down for future household use. Owing
to the subdivision of property by our laws of inheritance,
these small rents became sometimes divided up into minute
particles, one notable lawsuit in 1887 was brought by the
prévot of Blanchelande against three of the tenants of the
fief for the payment of “one fowl, one half and one sixteenth
of a fowl, one fortieth and one four hundred and eightieth
part of a fowl, twenty-eight eggs, and three-fourths and
one-eighth of an egg,” fivepence being the usual fine for
non-payment.
In old Guernsey documents are also to be found curious
redevances. For instance, the Abbot of Mont St. Michel
owed the Crown Officers three dinners a year, and the Prior
of Lihou owed one to the tenants of the Fief Thomas
Blondel. In 1393 a rent of a chaplet of roses on St.
John’s Day was owed by John Benest to the heirs of
Denis Le Marchant, and another even more curious one of
“a dozen butterflies,” was the subject of a lawsuit in 1591.
Cakes at Christmas time or at Easter are also frequently
met with. These nominal rents are supposed to owe their
origin to gifts of land, and as it was impossible to give
outright land held of another person, they are simply a
“pro forma ” acknowledgment of tenure.
Dinners to tenants on special occasions were frequently
given in the middle ages. To this day the Royal Court,
the Crown Officers, and the Seigneurs of fiefs owing suit
of court, dine at the king’s expense after each of the
Courts of Chief Pleas. The ancient name of these dinners
was “Diner avec le Roi.” Formerly they were held much
more frequently than three times a year, as at present.
An old document now in the archives at St. Lo, dating early
in the reign of Edward I[., gives a lst of the following
other occasions :—When the Bailiff chose the juries of
the parishes for the assizes, when he inspected the king’s
highways, and when he taxed the fines of the assizes.
Also, when a felon forfeited his goods to the king, or
when a trial by battle was appealed and when it was
fought. |
The seigneurs of the principal fiefs also owed their
tenants a dinner after the three annual Courts of Chief
Pleas. This custom is still kept up on many fiefs at the
present day.
76 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
ManorRIAL CHAPELS.
The de Chesneys, Seigneurs of Anneville and Fief du
Comte possessed four manorial chapels in the fifteenth century.
(1) The chapel of St. Thomas d’Anneville, the ruins of
which still exist in the rear of the old Manor House at
Les Annevilles.
(2) The chapel of Notre Dame de Pulias, sup-
posed to be the same as Notre Dame de 1 Epine,
which was destroyed at the Reformation by the Gover-
nor, Sir Thomas Leighton, much against the wishes
of the inhabitants of the Vingtaine dle “Y Epine. The site
of this chapel has not yet been satisfactorily identified.
Probably it may have been the chapel of the Fief des
Bruniaux de Nermont, and built by the de Burnels or their
predecessors, the Legats, long before this fief came into
the possession of the de Chesneys.
(3) St. George, which originally belonged to the Abbey
of Mont St. Michel, and is mentioned in a Bull of Pope
Adrian [V., in 1156. How it came into the possession of
the de Chesneys is not known. It was unfortunately pulled
down at the end of the eighteenth century by Mr. J. Guille,
of St. George, on account of a dispute with his neighbours
concerning a right of way to it over his land.
(4) St. Brioc, Torteval. This chapel stood on the Fief
de Beuval, which was already in the possession of the de
Chesneys early in the fourteenth century.
Another manorial chapel was that of St. Michel du
Manoir, St. Peter’s Port, the chapel of the “ Manoir de
Haut,” which stood on the site of the present Constables’
Office, and which belonged to the Le Marchants for several
centuries. The chapel was to the south of the arch leading
from High Street. It is mentioned in an old document
of 1388, whereby Pierrot Le Marchant and his brother
Janequin sell a plot of land to the south-west of this chapel,
and stipulate that the buildings to be erected thereon shall not
obstruct the light of its windows. This chapel was still in
existence in 1521. When the old house in High Street to
the south of the arch was pulled down, at the beginning
of the last century, the remains of some of the old walls
of the chapel were discovered. On the northern one was
found a fine “piscina,” which is now in the hall of Rosenheim,
St. Andrew’s.
We may now glance at the history of a few of the
principal manors we have mentioned.
a
~r
~I
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
THE Manor oF ANNEVILLE.
As already stated, it derived its name from the Seigneurs
d’Anneville-en-Saire, in the Cotentin, its owners in the
twelfth century. After the separation of Slap in the
reign of King John, it was forfeited by John and Sampson
d’ Anneville, who adhered to Philip Augustus. It remained in
the hands of the Crown until 1248, when Henry IIT. gave it to
Sir William de Chesney, a kinsman of the Governor of
the Isles, Philp d’Albigny, the elder, whom he had accom-
panied on his last voyage to the Holy Land in 1236, where
Philip died and was buried in the church of he Holy
Sepulchre at Jerusalem. William de Chesney also owned
large estates in the counties of Devon, Herts, Somerset
Lincoln and Caiwnbridge, as well as several manors in Jersey.
He was also an important personage at the Court of Henry ITI.
In 1253 he purchased the Fief du Comte from Baldwin
de Vere, and thus became the largest landowner in Guernsey.
For two hundred and fifty years the de Chesneys occupied
in insular affairs a position very similar to that of the de
Carterets in Jersey, but they only occasionally resided in the
island. No less than three of them were Governors of the
Isles. Sir Nicholas de Chesney, 1297-1298, Sir William de
Chesney, 1331 and 1343, and Sir Edmund de Chesney from
1359 to 1366. Another, Edmund de Chesney, member of a
junior branch of the family, was Bailiff of Guernsey in 1480,
but was deposed from that office the following year. He then
became jurat of the Royal Court, but would seem to have
been a sort of extra jurat, as during his term of office there
were no less than thirteen jurats on the bench.
The de Chesneys, as jurats, claimed precedence over
all their colleagues, a precedence allowed to Nicholas
Fouaschin, Seigneur of Anneville, on his election in 1519.
Lord Willoughby de Broke, heir through his grandmother of
the senior branch of the de Chesneys, sold, in 1509, the manors
of Anneville, Le Comte, and the whole of his estates in
Guernsey to Nicholas Fouaschin, of Guernsey, merchant
of Southampton, one of the gentlemen ushers of the Household
of Henry VIII.
In 1595 Queen Elizabeth sent commissioners to Guernsey
to hold an enquiry concerning the manors held of the Crown,
and Thomas Fashion, then Seigneur d’Anneville, was called
upon to show by what tenure he held his lands. This inquiry
was the origin of the extraordinary legends that have passed
for history concerning the manor of Anneville. Thomas
Fashion produced before the commissioners what purported to
78 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
be an extract from the rolls of the Exchequer of Rouen,
of the reign of William the Conqueror ; it is almost needless
to state that the Exchequer of Normandy had no existence
before the reign of Henry L., and that rolls of its proceedings
for the twelfth century even do not exist. According to this
remarkable document, William the Conqueror, having heard
that Guernsey had been ravaged by a pirate called Le
Grand Sarasin, who had established himself in “le chateau du
Grand Sarasin,” on the site of the present Castel Church,
despatched his Esquire, Sampson d’Anneville, to expel him.
Sampson was successful and was given the Manor of
Anneville, which was said to have then included Fief du
Comte, as a reward. On the death of his son, Richard
d’Anneville, the manors were escheated to Robert, Count of
Mortain, the Conqueror’s step-brother, who gave them to his
Esquire, Robert de Vere, whose son Baldwin sold them to Sir
William de Chesney. Well, Robert, Count of Mortain, was
dead before 1100, and Sir William de Chesney was still alive
in 1261; still Elhzabeth’s commissioners seem to have
swallowed this little difficulty of dates without question.
Anneville passed from the Fashions to the Andros family in
1663, on the marriage of Charles Andros and Alice, daughter
and heiress of Thomas Fashion, and has remained to this day
in the hands of their descendants. The old Manor House
is mentioned in a charter of 1350, concerning the division of
the estate of Sir William de Chesney, by which Sir Edmund
de Chesney, his eldest son, who received as his portion the
Fief du Comte, stipulates that he shall have the use of
it whenever he shall come to the island.
This manor has been looked upon as the most important
in the island, but it owes this position more to the accident of
its having been the residence of the de Chesneys and conse-
quently the head of their possessions in Guernsey, rather
than to any particular nobility of its tenure, for it was only
held by petty serjeantry of keeping the King’s prisoners.
Le FIEer pu ComrTsE.
This manor originally belonged to the Vicomtes du
Bessin, who, early in the reign of Henry I., became Earls of
Chester, and derives its name from this circumstance. arly
in the reign of Henry II. it passed into the hands of Geoffrey
Wake, whose descendants possessed it, until 1240, when Hugh
Wake granted it to Baldwin de Vere, to hold of him by
service of a half a knight’s fee and the yearly payment of £6
sterling. It was one half of the original fief of the Vicomtes
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 79
du Bessin, the other half being in the possession of the Abbey
of Mont St. Michel, so it would seem that the entire fief
of the Vicomtes was reckoned as a knight’s fee. In 1253,
Baldwin de Vere, grandson of the above mentioned Baldwin,
sold his fief to Sir William de Chesney. Sir William did not
long enjoy peaceful possession, as in 1260, the Abbot of
Mont St. Michel claimed the whole fief as overlord, pleading
the original gift of Duke Robert II., 1028-1032. He died
shortly oben wards, leaving his widow, Relies: to continue the
lawsuit. In 1268 the Abbot promised the Governor, Hugh
de Trubleville, “his dear friend,” for his counsel and es
half the revenue of the market of “ Les Landes du Marché ”
which he also claimed, and should he win his cause, half of the
Fief du Comte to hold of him by homage. In other words,
the Abbot tried to bribe the judge to rob the widow.* He
was, however, unsuccessful, and the king confirmed the de
Chesneys in the possession of their lands.
At the Assizes of 1299 and 1309, the de Chesneys were
called upon to show by what right they claimed one-fourth of
the wreck of the sea throughout the whole island, also the
right of court for their tenants, and of chase on the King’s
Fief. Their reply was the first of the legends which grew up
around this fief,—namely, that Robert, Count of Mortain, had
given it to his servant, Baldwin de Vere, whose son and heir
had sold it to Sir Wiliam de Chesney, and that Sir William
Baldwin and the Earl had all enjoyed these privileges. In
face of documentary evidence still in existence, it is incom-
prehensible how such a statement could have been made.
Fief du Comte was sold by Lord Willoughby de Broke,
in 1509, with the rest of his manors, to Nicholas Fouaschin.
It remained in the possession of the latter’s descendants for
upwards of a century, when it was sold in 1630 by George
Fashion to Peter Priaulx. It was sold in 1722 by the Priaulxs
to the Le Marchants, and at the beginning of the nineteenth
century it passed by marriage from ie lentes to the Hutches-
sons. The present seigneur, Mr. T. Hutchesson, has a splendid
collection of manuscripts relating to the fief. The Plea Rolls
of the Manor Court and the “ Eixtentes” or Surveys of the
manor commence in the middle of the fifteenth century.
Other earlier documents referring to Fief du Comte are now
at Warwick Castle. They came into the possession of the
ancestors of the Karl of Warwick through the marriage a
Sir Fulke Greville with the heiress of the Wil loughbys, i
the sixteenth century.
* Tupper. History of Guernsey, 2nd Ed., p. 73.
80 FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
From the importance of its court and other ancient
liberties, Fief du Comte was by far the most important manor
in the island. It has no less than thirty-eight minor manors
dependent of it, viz. :—
Pomare ee von ... st. Peter’s-in-the-W ood.
Rozel ae: ee we Wale:
La Court
Grantée-. oe in Catel.
sae oe cae a Se Saciunaes
ouqués oth a
Bequepée
Au Crochon
Au Miére St. Pierre du Bois.
Huchon hae
Gouie : mee we mt. Saviour’s.
Des Chere = Pi)
Cobois
3ellenzére ...
Grangier
Besongnes ... SO 36
L’ Eeachier ... ins eet
Effards a ae
Saumier... ns ... > Catel.
Des Feuvres
De la Landelle
Des Queux...
Des Forgiers
Moullinets ...
Canviére
Au Breton ... i. sig
Cleres de l Krée
Mauxconvenants ... wel Ge Ge tae
rEETIET time RSA oe tela ce i OE
Trois Vattiaux . ..
Du Quartier du Camp Rout
Au Carpentier
Robert Gosselin
Richard de Nermont Ane
Du Quartier des Goubies...
Du Camp des Hais
Richard de la Felie
Dame Alianor
Vale.
In addition to these, the Seigneurs du Comte formerly
held the fiefs of Le Groignet, Videclin, and Carteret, Castel ;
FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY. 81
Beuval, St. Peter’s-in-the-Wood ; Bruniaux, St. Martin’s ;
Bruniaux de Nermont, St. George and Le Canelly, but only
the first three were dependencies of Fief du Comte, the
remainder being distinct fiefs.
SAUSMAREZ Manor, St. MArrtiIn’s.
The ancient name of this manor was “le fief de Jer-
bourg.” From a letter which has very recently come to light
in the Patent Rolls of 1230, it seems to have belonged in the
twelfth century to the great Norman family of de Barneville.
At the commencement of the following century it had
descended to an heiress, Nicholaa de Barneville, wife of
Maurice de Lucy, probably a relative of Geoffrey de Lucy,
Warden of the Isles, 1206-7 and 1224-26. Maurice was
killed during an invasion of Guernsey in the reign of John,
and his estates fell to the Crown during the minority of his *
heir. On the 27th January, 1230, * the king restores to
Jordan de Lucy (in another letter called de Barneville) f son
of Maurice de Lucy, his father’s and mother’s lands of
Jerbourg (Gereburg). How it passed into the possession of
the de Sausmarez is not known, possibly by marriage with a
de Barneville heiress. Anyway, in a King’s Writ of the
year 1319, relative to proceedings of Placita de quo Waranto
concerning Matthew de Sausmarez’ rights on his fief of
Jerhourg, it is stated that his father Matthew, and grandfather
Nicholas, had enjoyed the manor and all its privileges before
him tf.
The manor was held, as already stated, by grand serjeantry
of acting as the third butler to the king when he should visit
the island, also by homage, relief, and suit of court at the
three Chief Pleas.
In the sixteenth century Sausmarez Manor passed to the
Andros family by marriage in 1542 of Judith, daughter and
heiress of Thomas de Sausmarez, with John Andros, of Nor-
thamptonshire, who came to Guernsey with the Governor, Sir
Peter Meutis. About the middle of the eighteenth century Mr.
Charles Andros sold it to Mr. John de Sausmarez, a descendant
of a junior branch of its former owners.
La Rue Frarriz, St. ANDREW’S.
The name of this manor is a corruption of La Refrerie
which belonged in the 13th and |4th centuries to the Abbey
of La Croix Saint Leufroy, near Evreux. Through some
* Cal: Pat: Rolls, 14 Henry III., p. 282.
+ Cal: Pat: Rolls, 15 Henry III, p. 514.
- t Record Office, Exch. Accts. Bundle 89. No. 8.
F
8? FEUDALISM IN GUERNSEY.
inexplicable cause not only has its name become most bar-
barously corrupted, but an imaginary Abbot of La Rue
Frairie has dispossessed the Abbot of Longues from the
list of Seigneurs owing suit at the Court of Chief Pleas
and consequently the Abbot of La Croix Saint Leufroy
virtually figures twice over. At the Assizes held in 1304
the Abbot of La Croix St. Leufroy was sued for failing
to perform his duties in connection with this manor and
by an inquisition then held it appears that he was bound
to keep monks at La Refrerie (apud Refreria) in the parish
of St. Andrew’s to say masses for the souls of “our lord
the king, his ancestors ‘and successors.” The suit ended in
a compromise, the Abbot being permitted to let his lands
in Guernsey for a year, and was excused the saying of the
masses on payment of 100 sols tournois to the king.
Another reference to this manor is to be found in the
accounts of John des Roches, Governor of the Isles, 1827-1330,
as follows:—“labe de la referie (corrected to labé de la
Croes) a une priorté a Saint André et 1 dvivet estre moignez
residens et chantez III messes checune semaine en la dite
eglise por le roi dengletere et fera aumones.”
The correction of “Vabé de la refrerie” to “Vabé de la
Croes”’ is instructive as it gives a possible nel to the origin
of our modern “ Abbé de la Rue Frairic,’ and it would seem
to indicate that the Abbot of La Croix Saint Leufroy was
locally called PAbbé de la Refrerie as early as the 14th
century. |
At the Inquest held 1248 it is recorded that the Abbot
of La Croix Saint Leufroy held three carucates of land
by service of keeping the king’s prisoners.
The charters of this Abbey are now in the Bibliothéque
Nationale, Paris, but as far as I am aware they have never
been examined by our local historians. It is quite possible
that much interesting matter concerning the Abbey’s Guernsey
fief might be found in them.
THE GREAT METEOR OF FEBRUARY 22np, 1909.
BY MR. B. T. ROWSWELL.
oO £
RESIDENTS in the Channel Islands, in common with the
dwellers along the south coast of England and the north
of France, were privileged to enjoy a magnificent view of the
creat Meteor of Monday evening, February 22nd, and of the
long-lived trail of light it left behind. Had the phenomenon
occurred with an overcast sky we should have missed what
Mr. W. F. Denning, of Bristol, the celebrated observer of
comets and meteors has described as “ the meteoric spectacle
of a generation.” But as it fortunately happened the weather
was perfect for the observation of celestial phenomena ; we
were passing through a delightful imterval of cloudless days
—in fact the 22nd was the fifth successive day of unbroken
sunshine, each of which five days was followed by a clear
starlight night. On the evening in question a very light E.
breeze prevailed and the moon, a delicate crescent less than
two and a half days old, lay low in the 8.W. sky.
The regrettable thing of course in connection with the
passage of meteors is that the time of their visibility cannot be
foretold. Eclipses of the sun and moon are predicted to
the second, every movement of the planets among the starry
host is charted long before, and occultations of stars by
the moon can be tabulated years in advance if necessary,
but the day and hour on which a magnificent meteor will
flash through our sky no man knoweth or can venture to
predict. Without the slightest warning of its approach the
celestial visitor is in our midst, and before we have time
to realize the fact it is gone—streak and all as a rule.
The most that astronomers can do in connection with
shooting stars is to say that on certain days of the year
the earth, in its revolution round the sun, is likely to
encounter a larger number of these little bodies than at other
times, so that a careful watch on these well-known dates
may result in something out of the ordinary being seen—
perhaps a shower of fiery trails, or, it may be, a large
meteor. Owing to the fact that these several known meteor
[1909].
84 THE GREAT METEOR.
streams always radiate from a definite region of the sky, they
have been given the name of the Constellation from which
they appear to emanate, and so we read of the Leonids from
the constellation Leo, and the Perseids, from the constellation
Perseus. The former are the celebrated November meteors,
and the latter are seen in the month of August. It was
in connection with the Leonids that astronomers predicted
a brilliant shower of falling stars for November 15th, 1899—
a prediction that unfortunately failed completely.
But to return to the recent Meteor. Many in Guernsey
were fortunate to see the actual passage of the body across
the sky and witnessed the accompanying blaze of light as
the fusing mass swept past the island. Wery many more,
however, saw the wonderful trail or streak of light it left
behind, which slowly drifted across the sky in a N.W.
direction and only finally faded from view at 9 o’clock, a
full hour and a-half after its formation. Speculation was
rife as to what the phenomenon really was, while we know
for sure that not a few good people were considerably alarmed
at the very unusual appearance in the heavens. On the
other hand many who would have sacrificed much for the
sight of a spectacle which thousands live through a long
life and never see were all too blissfully unconscious of
the wonderful event taking place out-of-doors. Amongst
the latter class must be numbered the writer and other
members of our Society, all of whom had just cause to
bemoan their ill-fortune the next morning.
The local papers, of course, commented on the pheno-
menon. In the Star of the 23rd, for instance, we read
as follows: “ Last evening at about 7.30 a most brilliant
meteor travelled across the sky from the North-East to the
South-West. From what we gather it was in sight for at
least 8 seconds, and left a glow behind it which lasted for
almost an hour.”
And the Evening Press of the same date said :—‘* The
bursting of a meteor in the sky last night was observed
by a number of people in all parts of the island. To the
unscientific observer the phenomenon resembled a_ rocket
coming from the north, dashing like a streak of fire across
the sky until it appeared directly overhead from the town,
then changing its course to an easterly direction, and bursting
with a splendid “fireworks” effect. The meteor left a wide
track of vapour across the sky, which gradually dissolved.
The track, however, was distinctly visible half-an-hour after
the bursting of the meteor, and was faintly visible much later.”
THE GREAT METEOR. 85
In the same issue of the Evening Press Mr. Collenette
(who, I believe, has been in correspondence with Mr. Denning
on the subject) contributed interesting particulars as to the
appearance of the streak of light as it drifted slowly across
the sky.
In a valuable contribution to Nature, of March 4th,
on the subject of the meteor and streak, Mr. Denning supplied
the following particulars :—
“One of the most notable meteors of recent years
appeared on February 22nd at 7.30 p.m. and was observed
from the southern counties of England. It was a brilhant
object, at first emitting an orange light, varying in intensity,
then when about half its flight had been performed it suddenly
blazed out with a steely-blue lustre and ht up the foge
atmosphere as though a huge rocket had exploded. It left
a short, luminous streak where the chief outburst occurred,
but this streak immediately intensified and soon extended
along the whole path traversed by the meteor. Becoming
bent and contorted, it assumed a variety of shapes and drifted
to north-west under the action of upper wind currents.
Diffusing itself into a broad, fait band of irregular form,
it was ultimately lost amid the Milky Way about two
hours after the time of its first projection. The long duration
of the streak is almost without parallel in this country, though
the Madrid meteorite of 1896, February 10, lett a luminous
band or cosmic cloud visible in the sky for 54 hours !
“The meteor of February 22nd was a Leonid, but the
radiant is not quite accurately defined, as the flight of the
object was very similar at most of the stations, for it slightly
descended from Canis Minor to the southern region of
Orion. But there is no doubt that the direction was from
Leo, and the point of radiation seems well indicated at.
175° + 16° near B. Leonis. Just possibly the radiant may
have been at 155° + 12°, for I saw a fairly bright meteor
on the same night passing slowly from 150° + 40° to
148° + 49°, and directed from this centre 5° KE. of Regulus.
The height of the large meteor was from about sixty to
twenty-six miles over the English Channel, about forty miles
south of the coasts of Sussex, Hampshire and Dorset. The
luminous course was about 135 miles in length, and the
velocity 20 miles per second. Several observations indicate
a greater length of path and a lower elevation (22 miles)
at the end, vertically over a point 50 miles S. of Plymouth.
The best estimates for the duration of flight are 5-6 secs.,
6-7 secs., and 8 secs. . . . . One bright bend in the
86 THE GREAT METEOR.
luminous material moved to N.W. at a rate of eighty
miles per hour, and appears to have retained approximately
the same height of thirty-two miles while it travelled from
over a point N. of Alderney Island to over Dartmoor.
*¢ The phenomenon may be aptly described as the meteoric
spectacle of a generation. As the nucleus sailed along its
nearly horizontal course, its light was far from being even.
It gave a series of outbursts, the brighter of which much
exceeded the lustre of Venus. This comparison applies
to a distance of 100 miles. The mate of a vessel in the
Channel near Start Point says the light was astonishing,
and broke out with startling vividness, so that anyone could
have easily seen to read. ie
“The nucleus of the meteor as it traversed its course
threw off a train of fiery sparks, such as is often seen,
but these quickly died away. Then slowly the durable streak
or trail came out, intensifying rapidly and stretching across
the sky like a silver ribbon very irregularly arranged. By
one observer in the Channel it was watched for three
hours, until it became faintly blended with the Milky Way
in Cepheus and Cygnus. . . . At the termination of
the meteor’s career it evidently suffered disruption by two
violent explosions, the places of which were definitely marked
by brilliant condensations at the angles of the bent streaks.”
In a further contribution on the subject of the streak,
to Nature the following week, its length as observed at
Guernsey at 7.45 o’clock is given as 65°, and Mr. Denning
says: “The meteor had a long way still to travel before it
could have reached the earth had it continued its course
westwards. Could it have withstood disruption and dispersion, it
would have fallen into the sea about forty miles south of the
Scilly Isles, and this is about 129 miles W. of the point
where it appears to have collapsed, and its material to have
been deflected southwards.”
On March 18th yet one more contribution from Mr.
Denning appeared in Nature as follows :—
“The observations of this unusual object [the Meteor
of February 22] are exceedingly numerous, but some of
them are discordant, and occasion doubts as to the exact
path which the meteor traversed in our atmosphere. The
radiant _ point being inaccurately defined the direction and
height ‘are also to some extent uncertain. Apart from the
determination already mentioned in Nature, I have worked
out two others, which do not differ very materially except
in the elevation at the end. Further descriptions from
THE GEEAT METEOR. 87
France of a trustworthy and precise nature will enable the
real path over the English Channel to be more certainly
ascertained.
Radiant point .:....... ah te oe tae LI, > 20>
etoht at first: <3... 50 miles ... 56 miles.
Idtersht at end ...3..:. Oe ass epee aes.
Length of path ...... 1a eae Set bon” ayy
Velocity per second... Cones Sea ON has
“In the event of the position at 190° + 20° being the
correct one, the meteor was really a Come Berencid, and
several fairly good observations from France and the Channel
Islands indicate that it is entitled to some degree of
confidence.”
To all this official and interesting information from the
pen of so great an authority on the subject of meteors as Mr.
Denning, little can be added, but I should just like to say
in conclusion that the meteor’s path in mid-air having been
40 miles southtof the coasts of Sussex, Hampshire and Dorset,
that is directly over the English Channel, its distance from
Guernsey must have been roughly the same, or perhaps a
little less. But however this may be, the actual flight of
the body, as seen from here, must have been north of the
island and very high in the sky. And its passage from
I. to W. across our field of view must have been an imposing
spectacle to those fortunate Guernsey people who happened
to be out of doors at the moment and in a situation to
observe the unusual phenomenon to advantage, for undoubtedly
both the meteor and the streak were quite as well seen from
this island as from anywhere else.
NOTES ON MOSSES, HEPATIC.® AND LICHENS
FROM THE CHANNEL ISLANDS.
BY P. G. M. RHODES, B.A.
THE following list comprises some of the more interesting of
the mosses, hepatice and lichens collected by me in the
Channel Islands in 1907-1909, during the months of March
and April of each year. Besides these I found many more or
less common species in Guernsey and Sark, but as localities
for these are specified in Mr. Marquand’s Flora of Guernsey
and the Lesser Channel Islands there is no need to include
them in the present list.
As regards Jersey I do not know what has already been
recorded, so I have noted some of the common species. A
few are apparently new records for the Channel Islands. In
the case of the mosses, vouchers of such have been submitted
to Mr. Ingham. Nearly all the lichens have been verified by
the Rev. H. P. Reader, O.P.
No very important discoveries are reported here ; but it
may be mentioned that Grimmia subsquarrosa appears to be
another instance of a plant which, while rare in Great Britain,
is well distributed and locally abundant in the Channel Islands.
It is also curious that among the lichens of the north coast of
Jersey there are several (e.g., Lecidea geminata) which seem
to occur chiefly among the Welsh and Scotch mountains.
MOSSES.
Polytrichum aloides, Hedw. Jersey, St. Martin’s.
Campylopus pyriformis, Brid. Jersey, St. Martin’s.
C. introflexus, S7id. Guernsey, Le Gouffre. Jersey, cliffs, Bouley Bay.
Dieranum scoparium, Hedw. Sark, between Creux Harbour and Dixcart.
Jersey, cliffs, Rozel.
Fissidens viridulus, Wahi. Guernsey, Fermain Valley.
F. bryoides, Hedw. Jersey, Rozel.
F. rivularis, Spr. Guernsey, still near Le Gouffre, as recorded in the Flora
of Guernsey.
[1909. ]
NOTES ON MOSSES, HEPATIC AND LICHENS. 89
Grimmia subsquarrosa, Wiis. Guernsey, Petit Bot. Jersey, La Coupe.
Alderney, La Tchue. There is also a specimen in the Cambridge Uni-
versity Herbarium from near St. Aubin’s, Jersey. All the above have
been verified by Mr. H. N. Dixon, and belong to a form of G. subsquarrosa
which slightly approaches G. azorica. I believe this plant to be frequent
on the cliffs, but has been overlooked as G. trichophylla.
Hedwigia ciliata, Zirh. Jersey, Bouley Bay.
Pottia viridula, J/itt. Guernsey, bank by road, Varclin, St. Martin’s.
Tortula ruraliformis, Dizon. ‘Guernsey, Cobo. Alderney, Longy Com-
mon.
Weisia verticillata, Brid. Guernsey, under Fort George.
Trichostomum mutabile, Bruch. Sark,
T. flavo-virens, Bruch. Alderney, La Tchue.
Philonotis fontana, Brid. Jersey, Bouley Bay.
Bartramia stricta, Brid. Alderney, fruiting sparingly on the cliffs, La
Tchue. This very rare British moss was discovered there in 1900 by Mr.
Marquand.
Bryum pseudotriquetrum, Schwaeg. Jersey, Bouley Bay.
B. argenteum, L. var. lanatum, B.g§ 8. Sark, Point Chateau. This variety
is new to Channel Islands.
Mnium hornum, Ll. Jersey, Rozel.
Pterygophyllum lucens, Brid. Jersey, Douet de la Mere, Rozel; Bouley
Bay.
Thuidium tamariscinum, 2B. ¢ 8. Sark, Dixcart.
Brachythecium velutinum, 2. ¢ S. Guernsey, roadside St. Sampson’s.
New to Channel Islands.
B. illeeebrum, De Not. Alderney, La Tchue.
Eurhynehium prelongum, Hots. Interior of Sark.
E. ruseiforme, Jide. Approaching var. inundatum, Brid. Guernsey,
cliffs. The var. atlanticum recorded by Mr. Marquand is probably var.
inundatum, which has been confused with it by British bryologists.
E. speciosum, Schp. Guernsey, waterfall, Le Bigard.
Plagiothecium silvaticum, 2. § 8. Guernsey, Fermain Valley.
Hypnum cupressiforme, L., var. resupinatum, Schp., Sark. Var. elatum,
B. § S., Guernsey, Le Gouftre.
HEPATIC.
Targionia hypophylla, Z. Jersey, wall near Rozel Mill.
Conocephalus conicus, Dum. Jersey, Douet de la Mer.
Pellia epiphylla, Dum. Jersey, Bouley Bay.
Fossombronia angulosa, Raddi. Sark, near Point Chateau.
F. sp. (sterile). Guernsey, sands at Vazon Bay. Probably this is F. pusilla.
Lophocolea spicata, Zay/. Guernsey, still at Les Messuriers, Forest, as
recorded in the Flora of Guernsey.
Kantia Trichomanis, Gray. Jersey, St. Martin’s.
Diplophyllum albicans, Dum. Jersey, Rozel Manor. Sark, Dixcart
Valley.
Seapania compacta, Dum. Jersey, banks, Rozel.
Lejeunia ecavifolia, Zd. Sark, interior.
Anthoceros levis, Step. Guernsey, Saints’ Bay valley.
90 NOTES ON MOSSES, HEPATICH AND LICHENS.
LICHENS.
Collema melzenum, 4ch. Guernsey, sea wall, Fermain Bay.
Leptogium palmatum, Mont. Guernsey, Moulin Huet valley.
Cladonia endiviefolia, Fr. Jersey, banks by sea, Rozel.
C. aleicornis, Fiérke. Jersey, Bouley Bay.
C. eervicornis, Schacr. Guernsey, Grandes Rocques.
C. macilenta, Hoffm. Jersey, Roman wall, Rozel.
Ramalina seopulorum, f. incrassata, Ny/. Guernsey.
R. breviuseula, Ny/., f. gracilescens, Cromb. Guernsey, Hommet Benest.
Roecella fuciformis, DC. Guernsey, Hommet Benest, exceptionally large.
Jersey, Tour de Rozel.
R. phyeopsis, 4ch. Guernsey, Grandes Rocques, &c.
Parmelia conspersa, 4ch. Guernsey, Fermain Point.
P. omphalodes, Ach. Jersey, Rozel.
P. Delisei, Vy. Jersey, cliffs, Rozel.
P. prolixa, Vy/. Guernsey, under Doyle’s Pillar and at Grandes Rocques.
Peltigera canina, Hofim. Jersey, common on Rozel cliffs.
P. polydactyla, Hofim. Jersey, shady banks, St. Martin’s.
Physcia flavicans, DC. Guernsey, La Moye. Jersey, cliffs at Rozel,
scarce.
P. erosa, Leight. Jersey, on conglomerate rocks by road to Rozel Bay.
Leproloma lanuginosum, Ny/. Guernsey, Grandes Rocques, with hypo-
thallus remarkably developed.
Lecanora saxicola, Ach. Jersey, La Coupe, &c.
L. lobulata, Somm. Guernsey, Hommet Benest and La Moye.
L. erythrella, Ny/. Sark, Point Chateau, well developed.
L. atroecinerea, Vy/. Jersey, near Tour de Rozel.
L. subfusea, var. campestris, Vy/. Guernsey, Vale Castle. Spores smaller
than any known measurements. See Lich. Exch. Cl. Rep. 1909.
L. gangaleoides, Vy/. Jersey, Tour de Rozel.
L. badia, Ach. Jersey, Tour de Rozel.
L. cinerea, Somm. Guernsey, Le Jaonnet.
Pertusaria ceuthoecarpa, 7. § B. Guernsey, Moulin Huet.
P. eonereta, Ny/., f. Westringii, Ny/. Jersey, rocks near Tour de Rozel.
P. pustulata, Vy/. Jersey, Rozel Manor.
Lecidea alboezrulescens, Wulf. Jersey, Rozel.
L. atroalba, Ach. Jersey, La Coupe.
L. atroalbella, Vy/. Jersey, Bouley Bay.
L. confluens, Web. Jersey, Rozel.
L. contigua, 77. Jersey, Rozel. Also a curiously acervate form on stone in
hedge by Le Catel, Rozel. See remarks by Miss A. Lorrain Smith in
Lich. Ex. Cl. Rep. 1909.
L. cupularis, Zirh. Jersey, Tour de Rozel.
L. geminata, Flot. Jersey, Rozel Fort.
L. latypea, 4ch. Guernsey, Hommet Benest.
L. myrioearpa, DC. Jersey, Roman wall, Rozel. A curious terricolous
form.
L. Salweii, Bory. Guernsey, sandy bank above Petit Port.
L. sanguineo-atra, Ach. Jersey, sandy bank on Roman wall, Rozel.
NOTES ON MOSSES, HEPATIC AND LICHENS. ol
Opegrapha atra, f. parallela, Leight. Jersey, St. Martin’s.
Arthonia varians, Dav. Guernsey, Icart.
Graphis sophistica, Vy/. Jersey, St. Martin’s.
Endoearpon miniatum, 4ch. Guernsey, shore at Bec du Nez.
Verrucaria halophila, Vy/. Guernsey, Moulin Huet.
V. ethiobola, Whind. Guernsey, Petit Port. Jersey, Le Catel, Rozel.
V. mauroides, Schaer. Jersey, Rozel Fort.
V. nitida, Weig. Sark, near Creux. Jersey, St. Martin’s.
SOME NOTES ON THE MARINE ZOOLOGY OF
ALDERNEY.
BY MR. ERIC W. SHARP.
ALTHOUGH the land fauna of this island is well known,
thanks to the energetic work of the members of this Society,
the Marine Fauna has been practically untouched, with the
exception of the shells.
Low spring tides happened to coincide with the Easter
vacation, so I determined to spend a few days in Alderney,
and do some shore hunting. The coast gives one the impres-
sion of being a good hunting ground. It has rocky capes
separated by stretches of sand and zostera; the rocks are
broken up into gullies and caves such as marine creatures love,
and the tides run with such force as to ensure the perpetual
renewal of the water. My hopes were by no means groundless,
in fact the coast turned out to be far more productive than I
anticipated. The richness of these shores may be gauged
from the statement that I obtained as many as 120 species in
the three days spent there. Quantity 1s not everything, but
in this case there was quality as well; for many of our rarest
forms were found, besides one species new to the Sarnian
area, as far as I know.
In the following pages will be found notes on the most
interesting of my captures, but as they are chiefly rarities, I
have refrained from giving the exact localities where they
were found.
In conclusion I would like to thank the authorities of the
Marine Biological Station of Plymouth for kindly identifying
specimens submitted to them.
PORIFERA.
Although the structure of the coast seems eminently
suited to the needs of the Sponges, their numbers, taken all
around, were disappointing. If not as numerous as in
Guernsey, however, they were there in tolerable plenty and
[1909.]
fing
ALDERNEY MARINE ZOOLOGY. 93
one or two good species were found. Dercitus niger, a black
india-rubber like sponge. occurred once—a prize. Tethya
lyncurium was quite common; much more so than in
Guernsey. It resembles a Tangerine orange. Leucontu
nivea and Dysidea fragilis also occurred, while Dietyocy-
lindrus was quite plentiful.
CQHLENTERATA.
Alderney seems a happy hunting ground for Anemones.
No less than fifteen species were found, including several of
great rarity. Of the commoner species the Dahlia (Tealia
erassicornis) seemed more plentiful than with us, while the
Daisy (Sagartia bellis), so common here, was comparatively
rare in Alderney. The Opelet (Anthea cereus) is finer than
in Guernsey, many specimens over six inches across being
met with. "Turning to rarities, the first place must be given to
the scarlet and gold Cup Coral of Gosse (Balanophyllia
regia), an exquisite little gem with scarlet disc and golden
orange tentacles. These latter have no terminal knobs. The
only previous record is in Ansted’s “ Channel Islands,” while
Gosse in his “Sea Anemones ” records it only for Devon. It
is quite small, about one-third of an inch each way, and lives
in colonies on the sides of gullies at extreme low tide. Our
other Coral (Caryophyllia ‘Smithii) was quite common, and
many very fine specimens were seen.
Near the rocks on which the above were found was a
patch of sand sparsely covered with Zostera. This proved a
very good hunting ground, especially on the turn of ae tide.
Here three of our rarest anemones were found. There were
eighteen specimens in a radius of six feet. These three
species were Peachia undata, P. triphylla, and Cerianthus
Lloydii. In that spot there were twelve specimens of P.
undata, which has now been found in Guernsey, Alderney,
and Herm. One specimen of P. triphylla was obtained ; 1
was formerly considered peculiar to Guernsey.
Five specimens of C. Liloydii were seen. This is a long
worm-like form which builds a leathery tube to live in.
Two other zoophytes are important and worthy of note.
One is a purple Lucernarian, identified as L. Cumpanulata.
The only previous record is in Ansted. It differs from our
ordinary species Haliclystes octoradiata, in that it has no
capsules between the tufts of tentacles. It was growing on
the tip of a frond of the purple seaweed Porphyra, as was its
companion. Antennularia antennina, a tall compound zoo-
phyte, is new to the Alderney list.
94 ALDERNEY MARINE ZOOLOGY.
ECHINODERMS.
These, with the exception of a Sea Cucumber and a Sand
Star, were not numerous. Cucumaria Pentactes, with a white
skin and black tentacles, was quite common in the crevices of
the rocks. It is about five inches long. Ophiura albida, a
small sand-loving Brittle Star, was common at low tide, though
I have not seen it in Guernsey in similar places. Asterina
gibbosa, so common with us, was very rare in Alderney, only
two specimens being met with. A Synapta, presumably
S. inherens, occurred in the sand. ,
MOLLUSCA.
Univalves, bivalves, and nudibranchs are all as much in
evidence in Alderney as they are in Guernsey. Chief interest
centres around a Nudibranch, which is new to the Sarnian
list. This is a species of Holis, a red tentacled animal about
an inch long, which has not yet been satisfactorily identified.
Elysia viridis, living on Codium as usual, was rare. It has
been very rare in Guernsey during 1908 and 1909, while in
1907 it swarmed everywhere.
Very fine specimens of Doris tuberculata were found,
besides eggs of several other species of sea slugs.
An exceptionally fine specimen of the beautiful golden
Triopa claviger was found. Chiton ruber, a reddish mail
shell or multivalve, is new to the Alderney list ; while Natica
Alderi, Anomia patelliformis, and Pecten Maximus are not
recorded living, although dead shells have been found. P.
varius, extremely common with us, was represented by a
single specimen.
The Crustacea found, with the exception of Perimela
denticulata, were very ordinary ; while the Worms, Ascidians
and Fishes, were all of the common types, and need not be
mentioned in these notes. I append a list of additions to the
recorded fauna of Alderney.
CGLENTERATA.
Sagartia bellis, v. tyriensis.
S. venusta. A few colonies.
S. nivea. Fairly frequent.
S. sphyrodeta. Fairly frequent.
Adamsia palliata. One fine specimen.
Anthea cereus.
v. Smaragdina. Common.
v. rustica. Not common.
Actinia mesembryanthemum.
v. hepatica. Common.
ALDERNEY MARINE ZOOLOGY.
Actinia olivacea. Common.
v. umbrina. Common.
Bunodes gemmacea. Abundant.
Tealia erassicornis. Very common.
Peachia undata. Several.
P. triphylla. One specimen.
Cerianthus lloydii. Several.
Corynactis viridis.
v. rhodoprasina. Common.
v. smaragdina. Rare.
Caryophyllia Smithii. Common.
Balanophyllia regia. Fairly frequent.
Aleyonium digitatum. One specimen.
Lucernaria campanulata. Two specimens.
Antennularia antennina. Two specimens.
Sertularia abietina. Common.
ECHINODERMATA.
Antedon rosaceus. Occasionally.
Ophiura albida. Common.
Ophiotria bellis. Not common.
Amphiura elegans. Common.
Uraster rubens. One specimen.
Asterina gibbosa. Common.
Echinus lividus. One specimen.
Eehinocordium eordatum. One specimen, dead.
Cucumaria pentactes. Common.
Synapta ? inhzrens. Rare.
CRUSTACEA.
Carecinus mzenas. Common.
Caneer pagurus. Common.
Portunus puber. Common.
Perimela denticulata. Two specimens.
Porcellana platyeheles. Common.
P. longicornis. Common.
Galathea squamifera. Common.
Pagurus bernhardus. Common.
P. prideuxii. One specimen.
P. cuanensis. Six specimens.
Inaechus ?. One specimen.
Palzemon serratus. Not common.
P. Squilla. Not common.
Hippolyte eranchii. One specimen.
H. varians. Common.
Athanas nitescens., One specimen.
95
96 ALDERNEY MARINE ZOOLOGY.
MOLLUSCA.
Chiton ruber. One specimen.
Doris tuberculata. Very fine.
D. pilosa. Egg clusters common.
Eolis papillosa. Egg clusters common.
Triopa elaviger. Fairly common.
Elysia viridis. One specimen.
Aplysia punctata. Very common.
Pleurobranechus plumula. ‘Two specimens.
Hermea dendritica. One specimen found on Codium tomentosum at
Cobo in 1908. It is a small greenish sea slug, and is new to Guernsey.
“al
THE PEZOMACHI (Ichneumonidae) OF GUERNSEY.
BY W. A. LUFF, F.E.S.
THE insects comprising the genus Pezomachus are at once
distinguished by the entire absence of wings in most of the
species, and their general ant-like appearance. Up to the
appearance of the following list two or three species only
were recorded for Guernsey. Mr. HE. D. Marquand, whilst
collecting other insects this summer, captured all the specimens
he could find in different parts of the island, with the result
that we have now a fine list of twenty-one species. The
Pezomachi are all very small Ichneumons that pass the larval
stage in the bodies of spiders and the larve of moths and other
insects. When in the perfect state, they are very nimble
and active in their movements, and it requires a sharp eye and
quick hand to capture them. Up to the present they have
been let severely alone by most collectors, on account of
the difficulty in getting them satisfactorily named. Mr.
Claude Morley has however overhauled them, and has des-
cribed all the species found in Great Britain, in the second
volume of his valuable work on British Ichneumons. Mr.
Morley kindly undertook to name the specimens taken by Mr.
Marquand, so that the accuracy of the present list is assured.
This is a valuable addition to our local insect fauna, especially
as it represents a section not often worked by collectors.
I have added the dates when the specimens were captured, as
well as the localities.
Pezomachus kiesenwetteri, Férst. Seven specimens taken at Moulin
Huet on July 29th ; Icart, 11th and 16th June, 31st July; Saints’ Bay,
June 8th, and Petit Bo, 26th August.
P. zonatus, Férst. This species has several times been bred from the nests
of a spider (Agroeca brunnea, Bl.). 'Two specimens were taken, one on the
7th September, and one on July 31st.
P. rufipes, Forst. One at Saints’ Bay, June 8th. One at Jerbourg, 14th
June, and one at Bec du Nez, July oth.
P. ecautus, Forst. This is a rare species, four specimens only have been
mentioned as taken in Great Britain. One was captured on 16th June
at Icart. One at Saints’ Bay on 21st June. Two were also captured in
Sark.
[1909.] G
98 THE PEZOMACHI OF GUERNSEY.
\
P. semulus, Forst. Two were captured at Petit Bo on May 18th. Brischke
has bred this parasite from a comparatively large Noctua moth, Cucullia
argentea.
P. acarorum, Zinn. One specimen taken at Saints’ Bay on the 8th of
June.
P. nigritus, Forst. The male only of this species is winged. One specimen
of the female taken at Icart Point on July 31st.
P. mierurus, Férst. Has been bred from the egg bag of a spider Ocyale
(Pisaura) mirabilis, One taken at Bec du Nez on 11th June.
P. analis, Forst. Both sexes of this species have been bred from the Burnet
Moth, Zygena filipendule. It is recorded in the Transactions of this
Society for 1904 as taken in Herm.
P. attentus, first. One taken at Grande Mare, Vazon, on June 18th.
P. anthracinus, Férst. The male of this species is winged. One female
taken at Icart on July 3lst. This specimen, Mr. Morley says, is unusually
large.
P. modestus, Férst. Mr. Morley says that this species is very abundant in
Great Britain, in spring and autumn. Four specimens were taken
at Jerbourg, 14th June; one at Fermain Cliffs, 27th August, and two at
Grande Mare, Vazon, on 28th August.
P. agilis, Grav. Several specimens taken in 1902 in Guernsey, as mentioned
in the Transactions for 1903.
P. earnifex, Férst. One taken at Bez du Nez on June 11th.
P. nigricornis, Férst. Not common; one taken in 1903, see Transactions
for that year.
P. ecorruptor, Férst. Two at Petit Bo on August 26th. One at Saints’
Bay, August 2nd.
P. instabilis, Fost. A very common species in Great Britain. One taken
at Petit Bo, 26th August. One, avery large specimen, at Moulin Huet
Bay on June 10th.
P. fasciatus, Fad. Three specimens taken at Petit Bo on August 26th ;
one at Grande Mare, Vazon, on August 28th.
P. palpator, Grav. This is one of the largest species of the genus. One
specimen taken at the Corbiére on May 7th.
P. linearis, Férst. One specimen taken at Saints’ Bay on 4th May.
P. ecostatus, Bridg. Captured last year on May Ist at Jerbourg and
recorded in the Transactions. |
SOME IMPORTANT EVENTS IN GUERNSEY
HISTORY.*
BY LIEUT.-COLONEL T. W. M. DE GUERIN.
THE INVASION OF 1295.
A trivial brawl between some English and Norman seamen
at Bayonne, resulting in the death of one of the latter, is said
to have been the cause of the war between England and
France at the end of the thirteenth century. The story says
that in revenge for their comrade’s death, the Normans
attacked an English ship and hanged the English sailors and
dogs from the yard-arms, “and so,” says Hemingbureh, “ they
sailed over the sea, making no difference between a dog and
an Englishman.” Indignant at this outrage, the Knglish
gathered together their ships, while the French did the same,
and on the 15th May, 1293, a pitched battle took place off
St. Mahé, in Brittany,t resulting in a complete victory for
the English, who returned to Portsmouth with much booty.
Edward I. strove to keep peace, but Philip le Bel took up his
subjects’ cause and summoned Edward to answer in January,
1294, before the Parliament of Paris, for the misdeeds of his
mariners.{ After long debates it was arranged that Edward
should make a formal surrender of Gascony to the French
king, it being proposed that he should marry Philip’s sister,
Margaret, and that the duchy would be restored to him and
settled on the children of the marriage. Philip having
obtained possession of the chief strongholds of the duchy
repudiated the bargain and in a Parliament held in June,
1294, Edward resolved on war. Our islands were in great
danger ; the (rovernor, Otho de Grandison, was in the Holy
Land on a pilgrimage, and his lieutenant in the Isles was the
Prior of Wenlock, who not being deemed capable of their
* Lecture delivered in the Ladies’ College on March 18th, 1909.
+ Guillaume Guiart places this battle near Guernsey.
** Vers les illes de Guernesie,
Que mer profonde ataint et lie,
En lun costé de Normendie.”
(Dupont. Contentin et ses Iles, Vol. II., p. 185. Branches des roy lig, edit.
Buchon, t. IT., p. 146.)
t Political Hist. of England, Vol. II., p. 187-8.
[1909.] )
100 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
defence was superseded by the king, and Henry de Cobham
was appointed Governor in June, 1294.* He fell ill a few
days after his appointment, but the danger was too imminent
to permit of delay, so he was replaced by Nicholas de
Chesney, July 10, 1294,f who held the office until de Cobham
was well enough to take up his duties. The first few months
after his arrival in the islands passed by without incident, but
in the spring of 1295 the French fleet, probably that under
the command of John de Harcourt and Mahé de Montmorency,
which burnt Dover later in the summer, descended on the
islands, and they experienced one of the most terrible
invasions on record, the horrors of which left an indelible
mark on the memories of the inhabitants, and it is referred to
by them many years later as the time “when . . . . the
islands were burnt and destroyed and more than 1,500 men
were killed.”t It was a raid of extermination and destenca
The churches were sacked and desecrated, the holy vessels
and vestments carried off or destroyed, the images torn down
from the altars and burnt; even the Host itself thrown down
on the ground and spat upon. Women and girls were torn
from the sanctuary, the town and most of the houses in the
country burnt, the newly built pier partly destroyed and over
fifteen hundred men and women killed. "The castles were not
taken, and many persons sought safety in them with their
goods. It took several years for our island to recover from
the damage inflicted on “it by the enemy. In 1304, we find
the churches were still in a state of dilapidation, and the
Abbot of Marmoutier being sued to contribute his share of
the expense of their restoration. § Jiven in the year following
the town was still partly in ruins, for on November Ist, 1305,
the king authorised a toll on shipping for the purpose of
repairing the pier and rebuilding the town. |
THE FIGHT FOR OUR PRIVILEGES.
The long fight for our priveleges which lasted for over
thirty years, frou 1309 to 1341, is one of the most important
and interesting episodes of our history. It is also one on
which we Channel Islanders pride ourselves for in the end we
won the day. To understand the question we must first
glance at the condition of the island at the end of the
* Cal. Patent Rolls, Ed. I., p. 75.
+t Cal. Patent Rolls, Ed. I., p. 80.
t Ancient Petitions, Pub. Société Jersiaise, p. 50.
§ Assize Roll, 1304, Record Office.
|| Cal. Patent Rolls, 1302-1307, p. 392.
GCUBRNSEY HISTORY. 101
thirteenth century, that in part led to the dispute. In 1276
Edward I. had appointed Otho de Grandison as Governor of
the Isles, and two years later gave him for life the whole of
the royal revenue from them for his own use. Otho de
Grandison was one of the most trusted servants of Edward L.,
in whose service he had risen from the position of esquire to
the king, to posts of the highest trust. In 1278 he was
Seneschal of Gascony, secretary to the king, 1280, captain
of his forces in Wales, 1281, etc., but his chief employment
was as ambassador. There was hardly a single embassy
sent by Edward I. during the last twenty years of his reign
in which Otho did not take part. We find him sent to the
Pope and the Emperor in 1282, to the king of France, 1286,
to the king of Armenia, 1292, to the Pope in 1298, and again
to the king of France to treat for peace in 13800—13803.
In 1303 he was one of the commissioners sent to Gascony to
receive seisin of the lands restored by the king of France,
and also to settle the affairs of the province after the war. In
1299 he was summoned to Parliament as baron.* It may
well be imagined that he was too occupied with the affairs
of State to pay much attention to our unfortunate islands,
‘which were exploited by his lieutenants for the purpose of
raising the largest possible revenue for their master, and for
their own enrichment.
For the first twenty years of Otho’s rule his heutenants
were chiefly local men, and we hear few complaints about
them. However, about 1292, the exactions of Guillaume
de Saint Remy, Bailiff of Guernsey, were the subject of
grave complaint to the king, who sent over a commissioner,
Thomas de Sandwich, to investigate them. De Saint Remy
finding that the commissioner sided with the complainants on
all points, and fearing for his personal safety, fled to the
sanctuary of the Church, and abjured the island.t He fled
to England, and laid his case before the king, who pardoned
him in 1294.§ Guillaume de Saint Remy returned and
obtained restitution of his lands, but was killed shortly after
on the invasion of the island by the French in 1295. In
1299 we hear the first mutterings of the storm over our
privileges. Previous to the appointment of the justices for
the usual tri-annual assizes the king had ordered the people of
Guernsey to commit their customs to writing. This, however,
was not done, and the justices ordered them to comply with
* Roles Gascons. Charles Brémont, pp. xvili-xxix.
+ Havet. Cours Royale des Iles Normandes, p. 126.
{ Lettres Closes, p. 54, pub. Société Jersiaise.
§ Lettres Closes, p. 56, Societé Jersiaise,
102 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
the demand within a fortnight, from the 16th to the 30th
October, 1299.
The appointment of English justices for these assizes
was looked upon as a novelty and with disfavour by the
people. One John du Vivier boldly refused to recognise
them as rightly appointed, and was fined £30 tournois for his
temerity.* In a sense it was a novelty, as for many years
previous the custom had crept in of appointing as justices for
the assizes, the Bailiffs of the islands or prominent local men.
There is little to detain us on the assizes of 1299 or those
of 1304. The question of our privileges was raised, but
nothing further was done.t In 1309 the fight began, the
justice, John Fressingfield, called upon the people to show by
what right they claimed their privileges. They replied that
they and their ancestors had enjoyed them from time imme-
morial, but this the king’s attorney denied and demanded
proof. The justices adjourned the matter for decision before
the King’s Bench at Westminster, and the latter postponed
the case from term to term until 1318, or even later. In the
meanwhile affairs in the islands were rapidly becoming worse.
The Bailiff, Massy de la Cour, refused, by order of the
Governor, to take oath to the jurats to maintain our privileges
on his appointment. The jurats refused to obey him and
appealed to the king.{ The king sided with the Governor
and ordered the jurats to obey Otho de Grandison or appear
before the king and his Council.§ To these grievances was
added the more pressingly felt one, the rapacity of the shoal
of foreign adventurers with whom Otho de Grandison had
filled every lucrative post in the island. These preyed upon
the people by illegal fines and exactions. They imposed fines
on their own authority without consulting the jurats,
imprisoned people in the castle without trial on all sorts of
pretences, refusing to release them except on heavy payments,
and committed various other oppressions. Finally, in 1320,
at the urgent prayer of the people, the king appointed new
justices to hold the assizes, William de Bourne, Nicholas de
Chesney, and John de Carteret. These gave judgment in
favour of the islanders on every point concerning their
privileges. Also many of the seigneurs of the island, who had
been deprived of their liberties by Otho’s Bailiffs, obtained
judgment in their favour, and the Governor’s officers were
ordered to restore all that had been received from the
* Assize Roll, No. 1157. 27, Edw. I., Record Office.
t Havet. Les Cours Royales des Iles Normandes, p. 10.
t Ancient Petitions, p. 26. No. 5689.
§ Cal. Close Rolls, March 8, 1314.
GUERNSEY HiSTORY. 103
sequestrated liberties. Further, these officers were heavily
fined for their misdeeds, and the most notorious of them,
Gaultier de la Salle, was, immediately after the assizes,
tried for the murder of Ranulph Gautier, who he and his
accomplices had tortured to death in Castle Cornet, found
guilty and hanged.
The triumph of the islanders was complete. Unfor-
tunately they were not content, they wanted more, nothing
less than the indictment of Otho de Grandison and _ his
dismissal from the governorship of the Isles. The justices
seem to have demurred, and the question was submitted
to Parliament. Thomas d’lstefield, sent as attorney of the
people of Guernsey to Parliament, was set upon, beaten and
illtreated by the followers of Otho, in the streets of London,
and dared not proceed ; so the islanders petitioned the king,
praying for remedy, and requesting that “Sir Otho may
be removed from the said islands as one who has forfeited all
his estates for the wrongs of which he is attainted.”* Otho de
Grandison, on his side, represented to the King that the royal
revenue of the islands was seriously affected by the decisions
of the justices, who had exceeded their mandate to the injury
of the crown, and according to the islanders’ version he paid
large sums of money to obtain his ends.f| The. king ordered
the suspension of all the judgments of these assizes on the
plea that the “commissioners had exceeded the bounds of
their commission to the king’s disherison and prejudice of the
said Otto. He also ordered that all lands, tenements,
liberties and rents of any of the islanders that had been
delivered to them in accordance with these judgments, should
be again taken into the king’s hands. There was a general
refusal to obey, and we read of force having been used against
the Governor's officers who attempted to execute the order.§
On the 29th July, 1323,91 the king appointed Sir Henry
Spigurnel, Henry de Cliff, John de Ifeld and William de
Denum, as justices, to examine and correct the errors in the
judgments of the previous assizes. They reversed all the
judgments of their predecessors, but on the question of our
privileges they came to no definite decision, and left the
matter in abeyance. Again there was refusal on the part of
the islanders to give up “their lands in accordance with these
judgments, and we hear of Otho de Grandison, who had come
* Ancient Petitions, p. 31-32. No. 12834.
+t Ancient Petitions, p. 61. No. 2648.
{ Calendar of Patent Rolls, p. 9. 15 Edw. II., Part I., m. 22. 30 July, 1321.
§ Cal. Pat. Rolls, 16 Edw. II., p. 235, Feb. 2 iGo
{ Cal. Pat. Rolls, p. 437, 17 Edw. IL, p. 1, m. 19,
104 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
over to look after his rebellious subjects, accompanied by
his lieutenant, Gerard d’Oroms, superintending in person
the reaping and carrying away of Thomas d’Estefeld’s corn at
* La Ville au Roi,” * which evidently was one of the lands in
dispute. ;
The question of our privileges remained in abeyance
until 1331, when Edward III. appointed Robert de Scarde-
burgh, Robert de Norton and others as justices to hold fresh
assizes. The islanders were again called upon to declare by
what warrant they claimed their privileges, but their patience
was getting exhausted, and we hear of organised opposition.
A meeting was held in Jersey at the Priory of l’Islet early in
July, previous to the arrival of the justices. There Laurent
du Gaillard, one of the Governors, Peter de Garis and
Ranulph Le Gay, ex-Bailiffs, the Priors of the Vale, and of
St. Clement’s, Jersey, and many of the principal people of the
islands, including Sir William de Chesney, Matthew de
Sausmarez, Simon and Philip de St. Martin, &c., bound
themselves on oath to demand the recognition of our privi-
leges. They presented themselves before the justices at
Guernsey on the 27th July, accompanied by a large crowd of
people, and formally protested against the pretensions of the
crown to meddle in their affairs, maintaining that “ their
customs belonged to them alone, that the king had no right
to modify them »r impose new ones, and that they were ready
to defend them with their lives.” The justices refused to
listen to them, and there was a great tumult, the crowd
applauding the malcontents and shouting “oui, oui, oui,”
to the injury of the lord the king, the terror of the people,
and the peril of the lives of the justices.” When the tumult
was appeased, the justices ordered the Vicomte to cite before
them, Laurent du Gaillard and John le Viner, probably the
two leaders. They appealed to judgment by a jury of
the country, who unanimously acquitted them. The justices
then adjourned the proceedings against the other covenanters
to Jersey, where only one, Philip de St. Martin, appeared
and was fined twenty shillings. They then ordered the arrest
of the defaulters, but unfortunately we do not know what was
the ultimate termination of the conflict.—| This scene was
certainly one of the most dramatic in our annals. It showed
the authorities that the patience of the islanders was at an end,
and possibly had a considerable influence in leading to the
* Ancient Petitions, p. 33, No. 13171. Thomas d’Estefeld came to the island in
the service of Sir Nicholas de Chesney. and married Alice, widow of Matthew de
Sausmarez, senior, sister and co-heiress of the Bailiff, William de St. Remy.
+ Dupont Hist, Cotentin et de ses Iles, t. II., pp. 245-247. Second report of the
commissioners (1846, p, 310.)
id
GUERNSEY HISTORY. 105
subsequent abandonment of all proceedings concerning our
liberties. This incident did not prevent the justices “from
coming to a decision on the principal point of their commission.
The communities of Guernsey and Jersey were successively
called upon to justify their pretensions regarding their
privileges. At Guernsey, the justices adjourned the question
to Jersey for decision. The Guernseymen pleaded that a
cause commenced in their island could not be adjourned out of
it, and refused to appear. The justices declared their
customs to be provisionally forfeited by default, and adjourned
the question to the King’s Bench for settlement, where they
had also referred those of Jersey. After many adjournments
of the question by the King’s Bench, the people of the Isles *
petitioned the king in Parliament in 1333, setting forth their
erievances, and appending a list of their cherished privileges.
This petition is to be found in the Record Office, Coram
Rege Rolls, Michaelmas, 1333.f In it the islanders set
forth their claim to retain the customs of Normandy as well as
certain other privileges which differed from them. They
assured the king of their unswerving loyalty in spite of the
many perils that surrounded them, for they were in the march
of all nations, and never knew when they might be raided and
burnt. They ended by requesting that new justices might be
sent to the Isles to investigate the question. The king ordered
all proceedings against them to be suspended, and referred the
matter to his Council.
It would take too long to go into the points on which
we differed from the Gaeroine of Normandy, that formed
the chief ground of dispute during these twenty-four years.
They comprised the right of electing our jurats, the powers
of the Royal Court and many other customs very similar
to those of the Cinque Ports or the Gascon communes. The
answer of the islanders, when asked for proof of their claims,
was invariably they had enjoyed them from time imme-
morial.f A very loose expression, one which the justices
were well acquainted with, for 1t was the plea set up by the
majority of the defendants at each “Placita de quo
* Havet Les Cours Royales, pp. 13-14.
+ Havet Les Cours Royales, p 228.
{ In the proceedings in Coram Rege against Drogo de Bar entin concerning
his rights to the manor of Rozel, Jersey, it is evident that at the assizes of 1323 he
had pleaded that he held the manor and its liberties from time immemorial, but
when the case was adjourned before the King’s Bench at Westminster, he pr oduced
the charter of Henry III., dated 16 June, 1247, granting them to his erandfather,
and explained his former plea by stating that ‘time immemorial meant forty years
according to the customs of the Isles.” (a)
(a) Placitorum in Domo Capitulari Westmonasteriensi Asservatorum <Ab-
breviatorium.
Placita coram Rege apud Westmin.; R. Ed. fil Ed. anno 17; Term Pasche.
106 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
Waranto.” The Archbishop of York, for instance, when
called upon to show by what warrant he claimed high justice
over his tenants, replied “from time immemorial,” not one
scrap of parchment did he deign to produce.* It meant
simply that the people did not remember a different state
of things. We know from the Inquisition of 1248 that
the right of electing our jurats was granted to us by King
John, but their powers as set forth in that document were
very different from the almost sovereign jurisdiction claimed
by them in 1309 and 1331. Of the process of the develop-
ment we have no record. Mr. Marett Godfrey was inclined
to think that the growth of the power of the jurats took
place during the period when the assizes were held by local
justices.| How far this alteration received royal sanction
in the 13th century we cannot at present tell.
The question of our liberties was finally closed by their
confirmation in 1341 by Edward III.; but before examining
the reasons for this act, it is necessary to glance at the
invasions of the Isles at the outbreak of the hundred years’
war, and at the political situation in our neighbourhood, and
in our Isles, which as we shall see were the causes leading
up to it.
The causes that led up to the hundred years’ war with
France are too well known to everyone to need much ex-
planation. On the death of Charles IV., in 1328, without
male heirs, the crown of France passed to his cousin, Philip
of Valois. Queen Isabella, sister of Charles IV., preferred
the claims of her son Edward III. as his nephew, and
therefore nearer to the throne than a first cousin. The
French magnates repudiated her claim, and Isabella was
forced to resign herself to simple protests. For some years
the relations between Edward and Philip remained strained,
and though no open rupture took place both were secretly
preparing for war. In 1335, the king ordered the castles
in the islands to be repaired and put into a_ proper
state of defence. The following year, 1336, we were
ravaged by the adherents of David Bruce, but Serk and
Alderney seem to have been the chief sufferers at the hands
of the Scots. In 1337 the French sailors raided our islands
and the towns of the Sussex and Hampshire coast. Edward,
indignant at this outrage, redoubled his preparations for war.
On October 7, 1337, he renewed his claim to the French
crown, repudiated his homage, and sent Bishop Burghersh
* Pollock & Maitland History English Law, Vol. I., p. 584.
+ Bulletin 18, Soc. Jersiaise, p. 190.
Lorigine des Jurés Justiciers, par H. Marett Godfrey.
GUERNSEY HISTORY. airs
to Paris with his defiance. In March, of 1338, Philip com-
menced hostilities, the French fleet, under Behuchet, swept
down upon our islands, ravaged them, and passed on to
the coasts of the south-eastern counties of England. Ports-
mouth was burnt, and so alarming were the French corsairs
that in July, 1338, the dwellers on the south coast were
ordered to take refuge in fortresses or withdraw their goods
to a distance of four leagues from the sea. The French
then returned and ravaged the Channel Islands for the second
time, and on the 8th September, Castle Cornet fell into their
hands. In October following, Philip de Valois gave Guern-
sey to his son John, Duke of Normandy, who shortly after-
wards gave it to Robert Bertram, Marshal of France, one
of the most famous warriors of those days. In March, 1339,
the Marshal visited his new possession, and with a great host
invaded Jersey and summoned the castle to surrender,
offering the garrison, in the name of the king of France,
the restoration of their privileges if they complied with his
demand, or death to small and great, and the destruction
of the land if they refused. The garrison refused to
surrender, and the Marshal finding Mont Orgueil too strong
to capture by assault, ravaged part of the island, and then
returned to Normandy.* The interesting petition of the
people of Jersey which records these facts goes on to request
aid for the reconquest of Guernsey, where there was only
one French knight and eighty men in the castle. On
20th June, 1340, fhe French fleet was totally defeated by the
English at the battle of Sluys. The English having regained
the mastery of the sea, preparations were made for the
reconquest of Guernsey, and on the 29th October the French
were forced to abandon the island by Walter de Weston,
lieutenant of the Isles, but the truce which had been agreed
upon between Edward and Philip on the 25th September
preceding, prevented any attempt being made to recapture
Castle Cornet.
In March, 1341, Thomas de Ferrars, who had been
Governor of the Isles since 1337, was replaced by Thomas
de Hampton, who was immediately ordered to visit them and
to report to the king on the administration of the islands and
on the “manner these can be ordered for the king’s best
advantage in the future.”’t At the same time the king
acknowledges the receipt of a petition from the islanders,
* Ancient Petitions, Société Jersiaise, p. 67-68, No. 5580.
t The Early History and first Siege of Castle Cornet. T. W. M. de Guerin,
Published by Guernsey Natural Science Society, 1904.
t Cal, Pat. Rolls, 13841, p. 159.
108 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
requesting among other things, the preservation of their
privileges.* This was the first reference made to our
privileges for some years, and it was a preliminary to an
order of the 2nd June, 1341, to the Treasurers and Chamber-
lains to inspect the rolls of Robert de Scardeburg, and report
to the king on the proceedings at the assizes in the Isles
of 1331. Then quickly followed the charter of the 10th
July, 1341, confirming to the people of Guernsey and Jersey
the whole of their privileges and customs, without enumerating
them, but leaving this for a future occasion, which fortunately
for us never arrived.
What were the reasons leading Edward III. to at last
consent to ratify our cherished customs ? There were several.
The principal one was, without doubt, the sudden alteration in
the political situation in our immediate neighbourhood on the
death of John IIL, Duke of Brittany, in April, 1341, without
children. His succession was claimed by Charles of Blois,
nephew of Philip of Valois, the husband of Joan de Penthieve,
daughter of Guy, full brother of John III., and by John de
Montfort, the latter’s half brother. Brittany had, with rare
exceptions, been on friendly terms with England ever since
the loss of Normandy, and her ports were safe shelter for
English ships trading to Gascony. Brittany, in the hands of
Charles of Blois, meant virtually absorption with France and
the closing of her ports to England. Edward III. determined
to support the claims of John de Montfort at all hazards, and
soon joined in the war of succession. The great county
of Penthieve-Treeuier, the nearest part of Brittany to us,
adhered to Charles of Blois, while Léon, Cornuailles and
Vannes were the strongholds of John de Montfort. We lay
off the hostile coast of Penthieve-Treguier as a link connecting
England with Léon (now the department of Finistére). We
thus see at a glance that it was good policy to keep the
islanders contented and firmly attached to England, espe-
cially at a moment when the French still held Castle Cornet,
and had a firm footing near our island. The attempt to
deprive the islanders of their privileges had failed, it had
caused great discontent, discontent which had even led to
treason in Jersey involving Guillaume Payn, one of the
jurats,f Guille de St. Hellier, Seigneur of Saumarez, one
of the principal men in the island,ft and had even touched
the great house of de Carteret, renowned for its faithfulness
to the English kings ; Philip, second son of Sir Reginald de
* Cal. Close Rolls, 1341, p. 117, 23 March, 1341.
+ Cal. Patent Rolls, 1341-1343, p. 95. 20 May, 1341.
{ Cal, Patent Rolls, 1850-1354, p. 123.
GUERNSEY HISTORY. 109
Carteret, Seigneur of St. Ouen, was a fugitive in Normandy,
and only received pardon about. ten years later.* Of what
happened in Guernsey we hear little, probably we were no
better than our neighbours; one fugitive we do know of
who may, or may not have been a Guernseyman, and that
was Stephen Coquerel, Rector of St. Peter-Port.t
Note the hurry in which this charter of confirmation was
granted. There was no time to define our privileges, although
they had been under consideration for over thirty years; this
was left for the future, when, had opportunity arrived,
the whole question could have been re-opened de novo. The
hundred years’ war intervened, and England, in a death
struggle with France, had not time to attend to our affairs.
Then followed the Wars of the Roses, and when peace again
prevailed under Henry VII., no attempt was made to define
them, but each successive English sovereign confirmed them
on the lines of Edward III.’s charter. We were left to
develop our constitution on the lnes laid down in our claims
made before the justices in 1331; the “ Precepte d’Assize”
in 1441 marking a further step of development ; but it was
only in the reign of Queen Elizabeth that our privileges
were defined, and the -Precepte d’Assize received royal
sanction and became the “ Magna Charter” of our constitu-
tion.
To complete the history of this period we must go back
to the siege of Castle Cornet, which we left in the hands
of the French in 1340.
During the truce which lasted from September, 1340, to
the summer of 1342, the French remained in peaceable posses-
sion of the castle. In that interval the king had strengthened
Jerbourg Castle, and re-organised the defence of the island. it
On the renewal of the war in 1342, the siege of Castle Cornet
recommenced, and in the accounts of Thomas de Hampton, we
have details of the force of the beseigers, and of the blockade
of the castle to prevent communication with Normandy.
Towards the end of the summer, about the beginning of
August, the English force sent to Brittany with the Countess
de Montfort and Robert d’Artois passed our island, and after
leaving it encountered the fleet of Don Louis of Spain, when
the famous naval battle took place, in which the Countess
fought like a man among the knights. Another truce
followed in the spring of 1343, which found Castle Cornet
still unconquered, and the siege was again abandoned for the
* Cal. Patent Rolls, 1350-1354, p. 174. Letter of Pardon for him dated 5 Nov., 1351.
t Cal. Patent Rolls, 1350-1354, p. 534, Dec. 1, 1353.
t Cal. Close Rolls, 1342, p. 179.
110 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
time. The French captain of the castle was Adam de Routi-
chan, who, in June, 1343, sent Adam Charles, sergeant of the
king of France, to Normandy, to request supplies.* We
hear nothing further of the castle until June, 1345, when the
truce expired and hostilities again broke out. The Governor
of the Isles, Thomas de Ferrers, came over with reinforce-
ments, and some time seems to have been spent in negotiations
for the surrender of the castle, which came to nothing. We
read in de Ferrers’ accounts of payments to messengers sent
to Normandy to the friends of the knights in the castle
for news, and also to others sent with tidings to the king at
Sandwich. According to the Chronique "de Flandres the
atrocities of Maran Le Maronier, who captured six English
ships off Guernsey and put to death all on board, made
Kidward III. resolve to recapture the castle at all costs.
A. force consisting largely of Gascon ships accompanied by
Godfrey de Harcourt, the famous Norman renegade, and
some say by Reginald de Cobham, was despatched to this
intent. In the meanwhile Thomas de Ferrers had been
closely besieging the castle and preparing material for its
assault. Godfrey de Harcourt arrived with his force on
the 13th August, 1345,f and a few days later Castle Cornet
was taken by assault. According to the Chronique de Flandres,
Nicholas Helie, the French captain of the castle, and the
whole garrison were slain. So ended the first French occupa-
tion of Castle Cornet, which they had held for nearly
seven years.
THE INVASION OF GUERNSEY, 1356-1357.
Recently, there has come to light in the Close Rolls of
Edward III. for the year 1857, three letters referring to a
hitherto unknown invasion of Guer nsey during the governor-
ship of Thomas de Holand, 1356-7. This event must have
taken place either immediately before, or shortly after the
battle of Poitiers, which was fought on the 19th September,
1356. At this period the whole of the Cotentin was in the
hands of the English and of Charles, the Bad, king of
Navarre, who held all the chief towns and castles, including
the famous castle of St. Sauveur-le-Vicomte, which had been
bequeathed to Edward III. by Godfrey de Harcourt, and
which formed the rallying place of all the bands that ravaged
the districts of Normandy under French rule. During the
summer and autumn of 1356, Robert de Clermont, captain
* Dupont. Cotentin et ses Iles, II., p. 296.
t Bulletin VL., Société Jersiaise, pp. 47-53.
GUERNSEY HISTORY. 111
in command of the French forces in Normandy, made two
determined, but unsuccessful, attempts to drive the English
out of the Cotentin. It is probable that the invasion of
Guernsey took place on either the first or second of these
occasions. We learn from the above mentioned letters, the
earliest of which is dated 15th August, 1357, that sometime
previous to this date the French had invaded Guernsey and
captured Castle Cornet. When news of this disaster reached
Jersey,” Thomas de Langhurst, deputy of Otho de Holand,
heutenant of Thomas de Holand, Governor of the Isles,
collected his forces, and accompanied by Sir Reynold de
Carteret, Philip de Carteret, John de Garriz, Richard de
Saint Martin, Ralph le Empere (Lempriere), John de la
Hougue, and Denis Le Feuvre, with others of the principal
men of the island and their follower s, proceeded to Guernsey
to besiege Castle Cornet. After a fierce battle they captured
the captain of the French force in the castle, who ransomed
himself from them for eighty thousand florins.t Finally, the
French agreed to surrender the castle in exchange for their
captain. “During their stay in the island, the J erseymen
killed a certain. Guernseyman, named William Le Feyvre.
According to their version they executed him for treason,
according to his wife’s account they murdered him out of
ancient enmity.~ It is to this event that we owe the names
of the Jerseymen taking part in the expedition.
Have we not here the true origin of the story told by
Falle of the part played by Jersey in the reconquest of
Guernsey. Falle’s account is full of inaccuracies, his date,
1343, is quite wrong ; he evidently mixed up two sources of
information, the Chronicle of Flanders, and an old Jersey
manuscript to make them fit into the stor y of the recapture of
Castle Cornet in 1345. Still, have we not in the enormous
contribution of six thousand four hundred marks which he
says was raised by the people of Jersey for the reconquest of
Guernsey, and in the names of the Jerseymen who he says
were killed on that occasion, namely, the Seigneurs de Vin-
chelez, de Matravers, des Augrez, de Garis, ‘de la Hougue,
Lempriére and others, a garbled tradition of the ransom of
eighty thousand florins patriotically ¢ iven up by the Jersey-
men for the surrender of Castle Caeaal § ; and of the names of
the leaders of the Jersey force? Three of the names he
mentions, de Garis, de la Hougue and Lempriére$ are iden-
tical with those in the Close Rolls.
* Cal. Close Rolls, 31 Ed. III., m. g., p. 377.
+ Calendar Close Rolls, 31 Ed. III., p. 374, 25 Aug., 1357.
{ Falle. Hist. of Jersey, p. 63. § Cal. Close Rolls, p. 184, Nov. 12, 1357,
112 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
THE INVASION OF YVAIN DE GALLES, 1372.
If of the earlier invasions of Guernsey we have scanty
details it is the reverse with that of Yvain de Galles in 1372.
The difficulty in this case is to decide which is the most
correct of a number of circumstantial accounts differing from
each other on many points. We have first Froissart’s
account ; second, that of the author of the Chronique des
quatre premiers Vi alois, and third, our only Guernsey chronicle,
the ballad of La descente des Saragousais. Of these, I am
inclined to think the most accurate is the account given in
the Chronique des quatre premiers Valois, for its details agree
on many points with those of our Guernsey ballad. According
to M. Leopold Delisle, its author is far more accurate than
Froissart, in his account of events in Normandy at this
period, particularly on the campaigns in the Cotentin, and the
siege of the Castle of St. Sauveur-le-Vicomte, on which
Froissart is very unreliable, many of his statements being
contradicted by documentary evidence. As regards the
political situation in our immediate neighbourhood in Nor-
mandy, little had changed since the previous invasion of 1356.
The English were still masters of the principal strongholds of
the Cotentin, but the French had become more aggressive, and
were ovadually foreing them back, and even attempting
to besiege the Castle of St. Sauveur-le-Vicomte.
Early in the year 1372, Charles le Sage ordered the
equipment of a naval expedition to harass the English. For
this purpose fourteen barges and other vessels were assembled
at Harfleur under the command of Yvain de Galles and
Morelet de Mommor (de Montmaur). Yvain was the son of
a Welsh prince who had been executed by Edward III. He
was one of the “ disinherited,” consequently, filled with hatred
towards the English, he had taken service under their enemy
the king of France. His force consisted of six hundred men-
at-arms, besides the sailors of the fleet. Froissart states that
they were in all 4,000 men, but this number 1s probably greatly
exaggerated. Early in the spring of 1372, probably about
the .first week in May, Yvain set sail from Harfleur and
directed his course towards Guernsey. The people of the
islan] had been informed of his preparations and had urgently
requested reinforcements from the English captain of St.
Sauveur-le-Vicomte, who sent them forty men-at-arms and
about the same number of archers. On their arrival in
the island precautions were taken to protect the town and
harbour. The French fleet arrived aud anchored in Vazon
Bay. According to our Guernsey account, John Letocq, who
GUERNSEY HISTORY. 13
had risen earlier thar usual on that morning, descried the -
enemy landing on the sand dunes, near “la Grande Mare,”
and gave the alarm to the islanders, who hurried down to
oppose them. The Chronique des quatre premiers Valois
says “The French made full sail towards the island to effect
a landing where the people of the country were assembled,
armed with such weapons as they had.” “Now, you must know
that the young women and maidens of those islands had, in
the springtide of that year, made garlands of flowers and
violets, and had given them to the young men, telling them
that those ought to fight well who had them for sweethearts.”
The Guernseymen thought that there were only sailors. on
board the French ships, but as they neared the land the
French soldiers leapt on shore, armed at all points, and
attacked them. There was a fierce fight which, according to
our Guernsey ballad, took place near the mill of “La
Carriére,” not far from “La Houguette,” to the west or
north-west of the old chapel of St. George. Here, Richard
Simon wounded Yvain de Galles on the hand and thigh. The
islanders retreated on the town, pursued by Yvain, who had
divided his force into two detachments. On the heights
above the town, probably on the spot known as “ La Bataille,”
the site of the Grange Club and the houses opposite, then
open fields, the battle was renewed. Here, two of the
Guernsey force, Thomas Le Lorreur and Ralph Holand,
especially distinguished themselves, Holand being killed.
Towards evening the Guernseymen were reinforced by the
men from St. Sauveur-le-Vicomte (“ quatre-vingt bons mar-
chands anglais ” as they are called in the ballad), but after a
fierce fight they were compelled to retire, leaving five hundred
dead on the field, according to one account, or eight hundred
according to another. We are told in the baliad that the dead
lay so thick that one could walk upon them, and that the
blood ran down into the valleys, also that bitter were the
lamentations of the ladies of St. Peter-Port that night.
There is a discrepancy between the two accounts as to the end
of this battle. The Chronique des quatre premiers Valois
represents the flight of the Guernseymen as a complete rout.
Our ballad on the other hand represents the French as
retiring by way of the Bordage, and being there routed with
great slaughter. The true version is probably midway be-
tween the two accounts. It is quite possible that the right
wing of the Guernsey force was completely routed, and that
the islanders fled for the nearest gate of the town, that
of Smith Street, many of them being killed in “ La ruette
H
114 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
Meurtriére,” the old lane that formerly led from Upland
Road down the centre of the valley at the back of the College.
Tradition states that the greatest slaughter took place at “ La
Rouge Rue” at St. John’s. Sir Edgar MacCulloch was more
inclined to seek it at Hauteville, where there was formerly a
lane bearing this name. [am rather of the opinion that the
tradition points to a third “ Rouge Rue” which is mentioned
in an old deed of 1608,* recording the sale of a garden
bordering Forest Lane and to the north of “ La Rouge Rue.”
Thus it must have either been the upper part of Smith
Street, without the gate of the town, or a narrow lane between
it and Forest Lane. If the battle took place as stated at
“La Bataille,” near the Grange Club, this would certainly be
the most probable of the three.
The left wing of the Guernsey force may have retired in
good order on La Tour de Beauregard (which stood on the
site of St. Barnabas’ Church) by way of the Bordage, where
they may have repulsed a detachment of their pursuers as
related in the ballad. In neither account do we hear of the
capture or sack of the town, so probably Yvain was unable to
penetrate its walls. He took up a position near Castle Cornet
to besiege it. In the night, as a number of young men from
Paris were sleeping round their camp fire, in sight of the
castle, the garrison made a sortie, unperceived, and attacked
and killed them and then returned to the castle. This event
is no doubt the skirmish which, according to our Guernsey
account, took place somewhere near “ La Corbiére” and the
‘“‘ Bec de la Chevre.” La Corbiére is identified by Sir Edgar
MacCulloch as the point below Clarence Battery and the
“ Bec de la Chevre” is said to be at Les Terres, near the
Bathing Places. According to our Guernsey account the
French fteet had sailed round by the south of the island and
taken up a position off these points, where a body of their
sailors landed and were repulsed by the islanders. If, how-
ever, as seems certain, the town was not captured, this was an
exceedingly likely spot for a part of Yvain’s force to have
encamped, as it was in sight both of the castle and of the
“ Tour de Beauregard,” the chief defence of the town. It is
incredible that any force would have attempted to besiege
Castle Cornet by occupying the small islet on which it stands,
as it offered no shelter. Our old ballad goes on to say that
‘after the repulse of his force at the “Bec de la Chevre,”
Yvain re-embarked his sailors and returned to St. Sampson,
* MSS. of late Professor Bonamy Price, “ Lettre” under seal of Guernsey,
25 Oct., 1608.
GUERNSEY HISTORY. 11S
where Bregard, Prior of the Vale, received him with marked
respect, and entertained him and “la princesse Alianor,” his
wife, at the Vale priory. Aymon Rose, the Captain of the
island, who had retreated into the Vale Castle, was then
besieged by Yvain, but refused to surrender. Finally,
through the mediation of the Prior, it was agreed that Yvain
should receive a heavy ransom and withdraw his troops from
the island. It is a curious fact that although both Froissart
and our Guernsey ballad style Aymon Rose, the Captain or
Governor of the island, his name does not appear as such in
any official document of this period. The Governor of the
Isles in 1372 was Walter Huwet, whose leutenant in Guern-
sey in September of the same year was Sir Ralph de
Harmesthorp. Aymon Rose was appointed Constable of
Gorey Castle, Jersey, the 25th March, 1372,* and Havet
supposes that in the probable absence of both of Walter
Huwet’s lieutenants he may have been in supreme command
in the Isles at the time of this invasion.t Froissart states
that Aymon Rose fled from the battlefield and escaped to
Castle Cornet with great difficulty. The castle being said to
have been situated about two leagues from the place where
the battle had been fought. Yvain besieged the castle, but
it was too strong and well furnished with arms for him to
take. The King of France on hearing of the defeat of the
English fleet off La Rochelle, in June, 1372, ordered Yvain
to raise the siege, and proceed at once to Spain to procure
reinforcements from King Henry of Castile. This Yvain
did, previously dismissing his troops, and providing them with
vessels to return to Harfleur. A receipt of his dated from
Santander, in Spain, the 24th July, 1372, still exists. This
date confirms the statement that the invasion occurred in the
spring or early summer. It is certainly difficult to decide
whether Yvain besieged Aymon Rose in Castle Cornet or the
Vale Castle. The Chronique des quatre premiers Valois only
mentions the castle, which naturally one would understand to
mean Castle Cornet. Still it is quite possible that he was
unable to reach it and took refuge in that of the Vale. The
concluding verses of our Guernsey ballad relating to the death
of Yvain are absolutely unhistorical. Yvain was killed at the
siege of Mortagne, in Poitou, in 1378, by a Welsh renegade,
John Lambe, in the pay of Richard IIL., who first ingratiated
* Série Chronologique des Gardiens et Seigneurs des Iles Normandes.
J. Havet.
+ He was still Constable of Gorey Castle in Aug. 1372.
t L. Delisle. Hist, St. Sawveur le Vicomte, p. 180. Cabinet des Titers, le
Série, Mot Galles, > P (
116 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
himself into his service and then murdered him in cold blood.
Rymer’s Foedora, under date of 18 September, 1381, contains
an entry recording the gift of one hundred franes to John
Lambe and his companions, who had brought the king
the joyful news of Yvain’s death.* :
It was recently stated by the Rev. Gallienne, in a lecture
at the Guille-Allés Library, that the invasion of Guernsey, in
1372, by Yvain de Galles never took place, the chief reason
brought forward in support of this view being the fact that
while Froissart states that Aymon Rose was the captain of
the English force in Guernsey, we know from documentary
. evidence that he never held any official post in our island, but
was appointed captain of Mont Orgueil Castle, Jersey, on
the 25th March, 1372, therefore Froissart must have con-
founded the invasion with that of Jersey, in 1373, by du
Gueselin, and has made errors in the date, name of the
island, &c., &c.
The invasion of Jersey by du Gueselin has been the
subject of an admirable article, by M. Jean Lemoine, in La
Revue Historique for 1897. M. Lemoine gives in an appendix
copies of Royal letters, extracts from the accounts of the
Receivers of the Isles, &c., &c., referring to this invasion.
An examination of the extracts from the accounts of Aymon
Rose is however fatal to Mr. Gallienne’s theory, for they
clearly show that Aymon Rose’s term of office, as captain of
Mont Orgueil Castle, expired on the 3rd June, 1373, when he
handed the castle over to William de Asthorp, who had been
appointed Governor of the Isles on the 20th April preceding.
On the 6th July he was appointed to the command of a
London barge in the king’s service for four months and
consequently at the time of du Gueselin’s invasion of Jersey,
which M. Lemoine proves to have taken place between the
12th July and the 16th August of the same year, he was not
in Jersey, but only returned there with the fleet of Philip de
Courtenay, Admiral of the Fleet towards the West, who on
the 16th August of that year was ordered by the king to
proceed immediately to the relief of Jersey, which had been
invaded by the king’s enemies. Therefore for Mr. Gallienne’s
view to be correct Froissart must have made errors not only
in the names of the commanders of both the English and
French forces, but in the date, the name of the island and the
name of the castle beseiged !
* Clarke’s Guernsey Magazine. October—December, 1879.
The Invasion of Guernsey by Yvain de Galles, in 1872, by Sir Edgar
MacCulloch.
GUERNSEY HISTORY. hy
The invasion of Guernsey by Yvain de Galles, in 1372,
has up to the present been accepted as an historical fact by
all our historians, including M. Lemoine. We have for early
authorities Froissart, our Guernsey ballad La descente des
Saragousais and the Chronique des quatre premiers Valovs.
The latter gives the fullest and most circumstantial account,
agreeing in many particulars with our Guernsey ballad, but
differing from it in many details, showing that our ballad is
derived from a separate source of information and is not
merely a versification of the chronicle.
As regards the accuracy of the writer of the Chronique
des quatre premiers Valois, on events: happening in Normandy,
in our immediate néighbourhood, at this period, no higher
testimony can be produced than that of M. Leopold Delisle,
the greatest modern authority on Norman history. He writes
in his Histoire du chateau et Sires de St. Sauveur le Vicomte*
“que l’auteur de la Chronique des quatre premiers Valois a été
bien mieux rensigné que Froissart sur le siege et la capitula-
tion de Saint Sauveur. Presque tous le détails qwil raporte
sont parfaitement d’accord avec les documents officiels dont
jai précédement fait usage.” His statements therefore are
not to be lightly set on one side without official documentary
evidence to disprove them.
We have official docnmentary proof of two facts men-
tioned by the author of the Chronique in his narrative of
Yvain’s expedition in 1372. First, the preparation of the
expedition by the northern French Naval Arsenal, Le Clos
des Galées at Rouen, the accounts of which for the years
1382-1384 have recently been publishedt and contain inven-
tories “d’amoures qui furent achettées pour le fait d’Yvain
de Galles.” Second, Yvain’s journey to Spain after leaving
Guernsey is proved by a receipt of his dated from Santander,
July, 1372, which is now in the Archives Nationale, Paris,
Cabinet des titres, le serie, mot Galles.t We have thus docu-
mentary proof of the commencement and end of the narrative,
for this was the only naval expedition undertaken by Yvain
de Galles. A careful examination of the accounts and rolls
referring to our island at the Record Office would most pro-
bably give official confirmation of the central portion of the
story, the invasion of Guernsey..
The accounts of Nicholas de la Salle, King’s Receiver in
Guernsey from Michaelmas, 1372, to Michaelmas, 1373, are
* Page ou
t Les Comptes du Clos des Galées de Rouen au XIVe siécle (1382-1384) par Charles
Bréard, p. 152.
t Delisle. Hist. St. Sawveur le Vicomie, p. 180.
118 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
at the Record Office and were hastily examined by Colonel
J. H. C. Carey a few years age. Two items in his notes
point to an invasion of the Isles having recently taken place.
First the loss of a large portion of the royal revenue from
Alderney “on account of the destruction of the island.”
Second, the very large repairs made to the Crown Mills in
Guernsey. These repairs have an important bearing on
another point which will now be touched on.
GUERNSEY AND DU GUESELIN
The history of du Gueselin’s invasion of Jersey has been
exhaustively treated by M. Jean Lemoine, in La Revue
Historique, 1897. He has proved by extracts from English
State Rolls and the accounts of the Receivers and Lieutenants
of the Isles, now in the Record Office, London, the accuracy
of the main outline of the narrative given by Cabaret d’Orville
in his Chronique du bon duc de Louis de Bourbon, but he deals
with Jersey only and consequently omits all reference to what
d’Orville says of du Gueselin and the Duc de Bourbon’s in-
vasion of Guernsey. D’Orville relates that “ from Jersey they
passed over to Guernsey, where there was a castle which the
garrison did not dare to defend when they saw the other
castles taken, and it was the strongest of them all. The men
of the Isles promised to be true and faithful to the King of
France, and they remained so, so long as the good Admiral de
Vienne lived. Messire Jean Hedangest and Thibault his
brother were appointed to guard the Isles of Jersey and
Guernsey, and then the duke and his force returned to Quim-
per.” This account was written about the year 1429, and no
doubt is greatly exaggerated, but the raiding of Guernsey by
a French force during the year 1373, and most probably by
that of du Gueselin, is clearly proved by a comparison. of
Colonel Carey’s extracts from the accounts of Nicholas de la
Salle, Receiver in Guernsey, from Michaelmas, 1372, to
Michaelmas, 1373, with those of William de Asthorp, Warden
of the Isles, from 21st December, 1373, to 1st February, 1374.
In Nicholas de la Salle’s accounts we find a long list. of the
Crown Mills repaired, probably those burnt at the time of
Yvain’s invasion in the spring of 1372. Also he accounts for
the farm of the revenue of Sark for the year. Inde Asthorp’s
accounts we find a totally different state of affairs. All the
mills, except four, Maen, Petit Bo, Petit Moulin, and Les
Grands Moulins have been burnt by the king’s enemies
and no revenue can be obtained from them. Also only a
GUERNSEY HISTORY. 119
portion of the revenue of Sark can be recovered, because the
island had been destroyed by war; and further only one
hundred and seventy-three hens can be received for the
poulage of Guernsey because of the destruction of houses,
which had been burnt and destroyed by the enemy.*
We have then clear proof of an invasion of Guernsey in
1373 from these extracts. The presumption is that the
invaders were du (Gueselin and the Duc de Bourbon as
d@’Orville relates. It is, however, most improbable that
Castle Cornet surrendered as he states, but it is quite possible
that the islanders may have been compelled to ransom them-
selves by payment of a heavy fine in a similar manner as the
people of Jersey did for at least three years. The disorgan-
ised state of England’s finances during the closing years of
Edward III.’s reign prevented any successful attempt being
made to cripple the power of the French navy under the
Admiral de Vienne. On the other hand it is also possible, the
town of St. Peter-Port being walled and defended by the
Tour de Beauregard, that the people of Guernsey were not
left in such a helpless coudition as those of Jersey. They
had a safe retreat within the town walls for themselves and
valuables, and consequently may have escaped paying this
ransom.
GUERNSEYMEN AT THE SIEGE OF MONT ST. MICHEL.
Recently there has come to light in the appendix of
La Chronique de Mont St. Michel, published by La Société
des Anciens Textes Francais, some interesting documents
referring to the history of our island, during the wars
between England and France, in the reign of Henry VI.
Up to the present, this period has been the least known of our
history, very few documents bearing upon it having come to
light, but it is most probable that further research both
in London and Paris would greatly add to our information.
Shortly after the battle of Agincourt, Henry V. com-
pleted the conquest of the whole of Normandy with the
exception of the famous abbey-fortress of Mont St. Michel,
which alone held out for upwards of thirty years for its
rightful king. In the year 1425 the English made a deter-
mined attempt to capture it, and for the purpose of block-
ading it, a fleet of twenty vessels were collected from Rouen,
Danzig, Orwell, Winchelsea, Portsmouth, Dieppe, South-
ampton, Blainville, Guernsey, and Caen. These were placed
* Du Gueselin a Jersey, par J. Lemoine. La Revue Historique, 1897, p.56.
120 GUERNSEY HISTORY.
under the command of Richard Pouvoir and Lawrence
Hauden, Captain of Tombelaine. From the accounts of this
expedition that have come down to us, we find that the
Guernsey contingent consisted of three ships, La Pitié, La
Marie, and La Trinité, commanded respectively by Denis
Le Marchant, Pierres Nicholas, and Hemon Henry, who had
under them twenty-nine men-at-arms and eighty-nine archers
and sailors. These three vessels took part in the first month
of the blockade. They were reviewed by the Vicomte of
Carentan, Guillaume Biote, in the harbour of Chausey, on the
17th May, 1425, and seem to have terminated their engage-
ment on the 30th of the same month, up to which date
the captains and crew received payment.
If so, they possibly escaped the terrible disaster that
overtook the English force at the end of the month of June,
of the same year, when it was totally defeated both on land
and sea. The entire [inglish fleet was either burnt or
captured, and the Channel, from St. Malo to Calais, was left
at the mercy of the ships ‘of St. Malo and Mont St. Michel
for the remainder of the summer of 1425.
The names of the three Guernsey captains are well
known to us from local documents. Denis Le Marchant and
Pierre Nicholas were both of them jurats of the Royal Court.
Hemon, or Edmond Henry, was the son of Nicholas Henry,
of La Perelle, the foundry of the Chapel of Notre Dame
de la Perelle, now called St. Apoline. He was also one of
the jurats in 1421.
It had long been known that several Jerseyman had
taken part in the campaigns of Henry V. in Normandy,
three of whom, John de St. Martin, John Lempriere, and
Ralph Tourgis having been rewarded by the king for their
services, by erants of forfeited manors in that. province,
but this is the first notice concerning (Gruernseymen that
has as yet come to light.
There are also several other letters in the appendix of
the above mentioned Chronique, showing that our islands
at this period were used as a base for the English fleet,
and for the collection of reinforcements to harass the
flanks of the French forces as they gradually drove the
English out of Normandy. Thus, in 1436, Thomas, Lord
Scales, Seneschal of Normandy, sends urgent orders to
the Isles of “Guelnerry,” to the English force appointed
to guard the sea, for their assistance in his attack upon
the town of Granville, which the French had _ recently
captured. Another letter of 1443 refers to a similar project
GUERNSEY HISTORY. Het
against the same town. The commission sent by Henry VI,
to Normandy for this purpose, despatched John Bandulph,
Vicomte of Caen, to the Isles of Jersey and Guernsey
to collect as many vessels as possible, as well as men at arms
and sailors to assist in the attack.
It is evident that the vessels from our islands did great
damage to the French on the coasts of the Cotentin, so much
so, that in 1451, after the final expulsion of the English
from Normandy, Charles VII. refused to give up to its
rightful owners the Castle of Pirou, which stood on the
coast nearly opposite to Jersey, on the plea that “it was
on the sea shore near the islands of Gerry and Gernesey,
occupied by our adversaries, and in a place of danger.” <A
few years later the French made an attempt to conquer
the islands, and in the “ Paston Letters” on the 8th June,
1454, Botoner writes to John Paston, that “ The Frenchmen
hafe be afore the Isles of Gersey and Guernsey, and a grete
navy of hem, and VC (500) be taken and slayn by men
of the seyd trew Isles.” In the same year, John Nanfan,
Governor of the Isles, petitions the king for subsidies, and
among other things states that he had paid £1,000 to the
captains of “Shirburg” (Cherbourg) and St. Sauveur-le-
Vicomte “for the salvation of the lives of the hostages of
the said Isle of Jersey, being then in ward in peril of death,
which would have caused great division, and the final destruc-
tion of the said Isle.* It is probable that these were Jersey-
men taken prisoners during the last stages of the war with
France, before the capture of Cherbourg, 1450, as the
petition is endorsed on the 5th March, 1454, or three months
earlier than Botoner’s letter. A sidelight on the same period
is thrown by a “Lettre” of the 13th February, 1459,
formerly in the possession of the late Mrs. Giffard Sheppard,
of La Roque Barrée, whereby Guillmote de Mollepy (de
Mouilpied), widow of Johan Ollivier, of St. Martin’s, sells
to Philippin Johan, alias du Doit, two bushels of wheat
rent for having obtained the deliverance of her son, Johan
Ollivier, from the Castle of Cherbourg. When de Brezé
invaded Jersey in 1461, and captured Mont Orgueil Castle,
a final attempt was made by the French to capture Guernsey,
and a letter in the Patent Rolls of 15 May, 1461, speaks of
“the king’s enemies of France who have entered the island
of Guernsey and besieged the Castle of Cornet there.f”
Unfortunately we have no details of this attack, but it is
evident that the French, being unable to capture the castle,
retired to Jersey. This was the last determined attempt
made by the French to conquer our island.
* Ancient Petitions, Soc. Jersiaise, p. 89-90, No, 5892. + Cal. Patent Rolls, Edw. IV.,p.
THE RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY FOR THE
YEAR 1909.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
0
THe year 1908, as will be remembered, was the driest
year since 1870. Last year I prepared a table (IX. Trans.
for 1908) showing that the rainfall had reached a low figure in
the years 1858 and 1870 and that the two years, 1859 —
and 1871, following the driest years, were considerably
wetter ; in fact that they closed the dry period, or series
of dry years to which they belonged. This year, 1909,
has proved to be 7°78 inches wetter than last year and I
have reproduced the table (VII.), giving the fall in its place.
It will be seen that the rule applying to the last two very
dry periods applies also to the one we are passing through.
It will be noted that two very wet years, 1860 and 1872,
were immediately followed by wetter years, and therefore,
if there is a common cause for the dry periods, and if they
belong to any kind of cycle, 1910 should be a very wet year.
1909 has given the same rainfall as 1907 and has been a
dry year for it closed with a deficit, as compared with the
67 years’ average of 2°29 in. Last year’s (1908) driest
month was June with a total of 0°62 in. This year (1909)
the driest month was May with 0.75 in. In 1908 two months
only, March and September, were over their averages. This
year (1909) there were three months with plus quantities,
these were March and October, and in a lesser degree June.
The month of June has the distinction of having given
the wettest week of the year, 3°31 in. having fallen between
the Ist and 7th and inasmuch as the remainder of the month
yielded half an inch only it will he seen that June plus
quantity depended on the fall of that week. A reference
to Table V. will show that 2°53 in. fell on two days. If
we except that one week it will be seen that practically the
months April to September, inclusive were dry. January and
February were also dry—and in a lesser degree November
and December were also.
[1909.]
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY. 123
The three wet months, March, June and October together
contributed 49°/., nearly, of the total fall for the year and
this fact brings out the dryness of the winter. The Table (I1.)
gives the detail of the distribution througout the year.
As regards the distribution of rainfall over the island
there is now no doubt that the falling off in quantity from the
Town in towards the South and West is a real fact. This
year again shows the same peculiarity. The South Coast
has had 10°/, less rain than the town, St. Peter’s-in-the-W ood
shows 12°/, less, in the results of the year. The station at St.
Saviour’s being well in land is 6°/, less. The East Coast
has received from 4°/, to 6°/, and the town Stations are
within 5,/° of the Brooklyn fall.
I have corrected Table IV. to date and a comparison
will show that, excepting Oberlands and St. George, where
there is period is but 1 and 2 years and therefore not a fair
comparison, the main facts are unaltered.
The heavy falls in one day are more numerous this year
than last, the details will be found in Table V.
Table VI. shows how the two droughts of the year were
experienced at the varions stations.
There being an impression on the minds of some interested
persons that the dry years have greatly reduced the average
of the rainfall on the whole period under observation, I have
prepared a Table No. VIII. which will present to the Society
the actual facts.
It will be seen that the succeeding dry and wet years
make but a slight difference on the mean value of our long
period.
124 RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE I.
LIST OF STATIONS AND OBSERVERS.
Ref Part | Eleva-
No. Observer. Position of Gauge. of the | tion
: Island. | Feet.
1 | Mr. A. Collenette. ‘* Brooklyn,’”’ St. Martin’s Rd. | S.E. 300
2 | Mr. B. Rowswell. ‘* Les Blanches,’’ St. Martin’s. | S.E. 300
3 | Guernsey Waterworks.| ‘‘ Hautnez,’’ Forest Road. 8. 343
4 | Dr. F. Carey. ‘‘Grange Villa,’’ Grange. EK. 180
5 | Mr. J. Guilbert. ‘** Colborne Villa,’’ Rohais. E. 145
6 | My. F. Lilley. ‘‘ Les Héches,’”’ St. Peter-in-
the- Wood. S.W.
7 | Guernsey Waterworks.| Villiage, St. Saviour’s. S.W.
8 | Mr. J. Hocart. ‘* Les Mielles,’’ L’ Ancresse, N.E. 33
9 | Mr. A. Poat. ‘“Richmond,’’ St. Sampson’s. N.E. 25
TABLE II.
RAINFALL AT ST. MARTIN’S ROAD.
Rainfall. Inches. Proportio
ainfall Inches Greatest, © iM on thy wet
R otals to the ays.
el ate : he Year’s Total.
g Sees Ss a
/ ° oo =I
Months. 5 z a E 3 be 5) é
HE ° ‘
an | ge | eee" | & | B | gil eee
| ee /882 | 8] & | Sie ee
5 Ce ae < 7, >
Ars Inches a
PANUATY. ec. s 4 5% 2°23 |_3°74 | —L‘d1 | 0°72 | 12th 6°54 1073. | fo
Hebruatyic... «. | eel ON 82607 fe ten On 02225) oth B°2 | 42 110 ais
Manche tm ans | O19 | 2°54 | 4-265 | 0°73 | 29th | 15:3 |) 7:0), aOits
ACOUUL fect eerehe 2°16 |: 2°34 | —0:18 | 0°63 | 19th | G6°4.|> Go Ie
Miaygerwecen asm 0-75. | 2:11.| 1-36) 0°35. | 24th | 2°9 \tGeg Gieid
DUTIO™ \;. seeker eel 3°81 2°03 | +4+-1°78 | 1°44] 38rd | 11°2 a oe es ea
TUNA ee Gin cat 1°49 | 2°13 |, —0°64 | 0°55 | Oth | 44) SO) Iiieat
AUISUSi TE trees ate 1-03 | 2°40 | —1'37 | 0:39) 10th | 3:0 | =a A) 12
September....| 1°87 3°05 | —1°18 | 0°47 | 30th = 5°5 8-4 | 19): T4
October olka. Ta8 | 4°89 | 2°69 | 1:02 | 16th |). 22:3 | 1341 ae ee
November ....| 2°21 | 4°36 | —2:15 | 0°63 | 29th | 65 | 11:9; 14) 19
December ....| 4°58 | 4:10 | —0°48 | 0°73 | 2nd | 13° | 11:2 | 24) 19
he Yeats... c% 34:00 36°29 | —2:29 | 1:44] 3rd |100-0 |100-0 | 186/180
| June
RAINFALL
OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE III,
DISTRIBUTION OF RAINFALL OVER THE ISLAND, 1909.
North-East.
3 na
A g
o B
Seles
a | 3
zie Gl,
45
oD)
8 9
in. in.
2:04.) 2571
0°94 | 0°96
HOG Wao
E96.) 1°76
0:70 | 0°81
SOM sonae
1°34) 1°33
12045 | 079R
lei: | 1-83
ULOe i dee
1°92 | 1°86
4°06 | 4:03
32°81 | 31°80
96 94
165 169
‘South & South East. East. South-West.
wn : ; w
A | 4 ane Bers es a
Months. | © = 2 iS ‘A 3 5
re acy 3 ro) was 2 Ss
an S) — 3
2 FA S 4 em : 2)
a g s D Ss
4 ch A)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Bit: in. in. in. in. in. Caine in.
Samuary ..| 2°20 | 2:22 | 1°88 | 2°11 | 2°33 | 2°19 | 2°29
February..| 1:10 | 1°06 | 0°88 | 087 | 0°88 | 0°69 | 0°78
March....} 5°19 | 4°94 | 4°62 | 5:08 | 5°41 | 4°89 | 5°03
April Deowie gS | 188) 1°87 | 196 | 2716 | 1°89
DEAYS ciissi mOgor- O73 | O67 |-O-73 | 0:89 | O74 | 0:69
June MoOlinoaii| ofa 3 62-| oop | 2°64’) 2°56
July AOR ietoon ssi! Age 100 | alolt |, 1°38
August 105 5/"O7904..) 0:89) 1°00) 1:49" 0°80) | 0°92
peptember,; 1°87 | 1°84) 1°71 | 1°77 | Y79 | 1°70. | 1-75
October (oon dle Ol). 738), 1780) 16°96) | 7°68
INowember.| 2°21 | 2°02 | 1°95 | 2°18 | 2°10 | 1°85 | 2°03
December.| 4°58 | 4°15 | 3:94 |} 4°20 | 4°60 | 3°99 | 4°41
The Year.| 34°00 | 32°32 |30°50 | 32°22 |33°95 |29°78 |31°66
Comp’rison' 100 95 90 95 99 88 94
Wet Days.; 186 | 189 | 169 182 192 175 nei
Averages of all Stations.
126
TABLE IV.
DISTRIBUTION OF RAINFALL,
Showing the percentages of rainfall measured in various parts of the Island
taking that of ‘‘ Brooklyn ”’ as 100.
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
a |
ons e
ae Sis ist fag | ole [ola | djs
yas) Stations. Slalala | al a-| Seth eeee
Ore
7, (5)
13 |‘‘Breoklyn’’ and Hauteville |100 |100 100 100 100 |100 |100 |100 100 | 3
12 |‘* Les Blanches,’’ 8. Martin’s| 98 | 94 | 96 | 98 | 95 | 95 | 92 | 94.| 96) 4
6 |*‘Hautnez,’”? Forest .. — |— | 97! 99 | 92 | 94 | 89 | 94 | 91 8
fal GAT OC sten clashes acai ees — | 90 | 94 | 90 |-91> 92 | 95°1°92 | 91
TM ROWAIS cw oc os shane eeece — | 97 | 99 |100 | 95 | 95 | 98 | 96 | 95 | 5
De COWLES NAS sem citer Siren — | 95 | 95 | 95 | 94] 91 | —| — 92] 7
3 | St. Peter’s-in-the-Wood..| — | — | — | — | — | 92 | 88 | — 90) 9
pail teams MANS tice.) oetaveve cts — |— | — | — | 92 |118*) 90 | 98 | 93
O (Sta SAM PSO Sas. ce. ne ae — | 92 | 98 | 938 | 96 | 90 | 88 | — | 93 6
Sale ANCresse aa hake ee 87 | 91 | 98 | 94 | 91 | 91 | 96 | 96 | 93
DAC OOOK «eal eee tetera oe 87 | 84 89 | — | —|—]—]— _ 86; 10
Si Perelle ee heat sake acne 80 | 79 | —| — | — |] — — 80/ ll
2 tO erland viv. sc cts eisras eetenieeele — | — |) — |104 |101 | — | — | — 102} 2
Latib ew CONE CGM as ta. ome — 104 -- —|— — 104; 1
ZIUSte SAViOUrsiys wou: dienes or —-|—t(—/|—l—l—i1—({ 94 94 —
*
TABLE V.
HEAVY FALLS OF 0.60 INCH, AND OVER, IN ONE DAY, 1909.
Probably incorrect, some returns being inconsistent.
Omitted in the mean.
Stations. 1 2 3
January 12..| 0°72 | 0°63 | 0°60
March 6..| 0°61 | — | 0°63
5a 29-.| O13 | Old | Oct4™
April 19..| 0.63 | 0°64 | 0°69
June Ls) 1:09) 1-10 5) -41:09
4 3..{ 1.44 | 1:31 | 1°42
October 4..| — — —
9 best 0°61 — | — |
. 165.) 1502"). 00576)) 20788
- 20)-5) 0-7 ON | Osis 0 sial
a 2) OxGon| 0:63 Os00
- 26..| 0°67 | 0°64 | 0°60
i 27..| 0°64 | 0°72 | 0°82
November 15..) — =a i) ==
ae 29..| 0°63 | — | 0°62
December 2..! 0.73 —
a 21,.| O67 | — | —
4 5
0°70 | 0°72
0°60 | 0°67
0°73, | 0°65
— |. 0°65
1:05 | 1:08
1°32 | 1°34
0:97 | 1:05
0 75 | 0°67
— 0°67
— | 0°69
0:69) 70:77
0°64 | 0°64
0°68 | O71
— 0°61
6 7
0°60 | 0°65
0°76 | 0°70
0°85 | 0°80
0°73 | 0°63
0°80 |. 0°99
0°78 | 1°25
— | 0°60
82 | 0°84
0°73 | 0°70
0°68 | 0°66
0°80 | 1°04
— | 0°62
0°68 | 0°73
° | | (ve)
ar)
“10>
G1 O © bb
© Co, Soret
Gul imeem leet eae
S we
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY. 127
TABLE VI.
Droughts, 1909. Number of Consecutive Dry Days.
Stations.
Day of com-
mencement. 1 2 3 4 5 | 6 7 8 9
April tst..... | 23 23 23 23 23 | 23 23 23 23
|
July 3lst.... Lgl 15 uh aed aes C7 15
14 days without rain = a drought.
TABLE VII.
PREVIOUS YEARS OF LOWEST RAINFALL WITH THE 5 YEARS
BEFORE AND AFTER THE MINIMA.
In.| 1853 | 1854 | 1855 | 1856 | 1857 | 485s || 1859 | 1860 | 1861 | 1862 | 1863
56 |
ys | 48-04
. 43°41
34°98 34:47
99-99 | 80°42 | 80°36 | 31°90. aaa
26
25°03 BL
In.| 1865 | 1866 | 1867 | 1868 | 1869 | 1870 | 1871 | 1872 | 1873 | 1874 | 1875
56 56°96
46
36 37 07 | 36°26 37°72 | . 44 | 36°28
ere 35°38
| 32-99 |
26 | 27:05. 5
In.| 1903 | 1904 | 1905 | 1906 | 1907 | 1908) 1909
|
36 37°72
34°12 33°43 34°00 Rapes
26 26°22
128 -RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE VIII.
AVERAGE ANNUAL VALUE OF RAINFALL.
: Average Effect of
The Year No. of | Dry or Rainfall of full éach wear Gh
included Years. Wet. of Year. Berea pees
Inches. Inches. Inches.
IPPevIOUS).%2. «60s)- 58 — — 36°62 —
OGY oe otitis 59 Dry. 27°97 36°54 —0°08
DOD Fe a roietenc cacis 60 Dry. 33°98 36°52 —0°02
OOD ete se ena 61 Wier. 40°88 36°62 -+- 0°10
OOS oor A torah Bie 62 Wet. 37°72 36°62 —
WOODY oF eek icus 55 63 Dry. 34°12 36°59 —0°03
NOOG: Gali vhee ee 64 Dry. 33 43 36°46 —0°13
TO Ge oss cnet 65 Dry. 34°00 36°50 -++- 0°04
NOOB) ate eens kine 66 | Very Dry. 26°22 36°32 —0°18
TOD is Fre ys ten 67 Dry. 34°00 36°29 —0°03
Whole period of
OVCATS) sti. os — Dry. 33°99 — 0°33 —
SUNSHINE IN GUERNSEY.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
0
WE now have 16 years averages of sunshine., Compared
with the 67 years period for rainfall this is a very short time
and it is not to be expected that the figure quoted as the
average sunshine, 1917°2 hours, is really the sunshine of
Guernsey, for we have just passed through and for all we
know, may be still passing through a cold series of years.
The year just concluded has been one of average heat it is
true, but the summer had no pericd of sustained summer
heat and the average temperature has been kept up more
by the relatively high temperature of the winter months
than by the warmth and sunshine of the summer months.
We would have fared very badly had it not been for the
excessive sunshine of one month, May. This month stands
out as an altogether unusual one. The average daily sunshine
we expect in May is 7°9 hours, raised this year to 8 hours, and
when I say that the mean daily value this year was 10°9 hours,
say 11 hours, you will realise that there has been last May a
mean of 3 hours excess per day for the whole month.
The following analysis of the duration per day will enable
you to realise the excess.
Days’ without sunshine S25 0
,. under 6 hours ... oh 2
5, between 5 and 10 hours 9
ry) » 10 ,, 1] ” 1
” » Ll » 12 ,, 1
ry) » 12, 13 4, 6
as eon ends g. Pe no
5. A or ai eat
» under 10 hours ote ate full
» over 10 hours ... , ae 20
The excess for the month of May was 89 hours, as it
appears in the table where the average for May stands at
250°4, hours but as this avesage has been raised by the month
itself from 244°4 hours it follows that the gain of this May
[1909.] I
130 SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY.
over the average of past Mays is the difference between
339°4 and 244°4 or 95:0 hours. Then if we deduct 95 hours
from the total of the year we get (1968-95) 1,873 hours or a
year 44 hours less than average.
We are right therefore in describing the year, on the
whole, as being one under the average, but containing. an
exceptional month which swelled the total of the year above
the average. ;
February, April, August and November were above their
averages, but the seven other months were below and July
stands out as being the worst month, being 47 hours in deficit.
June and July were very disappointing as summer months.
Both these months lost an hour a day for their whole duration,
and when we consider that these are the month of the sun’s
highest position in the sky we realise that the loss was greater
than it seems. |
As regards records the year is poor, the total of May
being the only one.
In the second table you will find that no month of 1909
has reached the previous lowest. The gloomiest year we
have had, 1894 with 1,724°5 hours, was very much gloomier
than last year, even if we remove the excess of May. for then
it stands as 1,873 against 1,724 hours and is a small mercy to
be thankful for.
In considering the cloudiness of the year as given in
Table I. it must be remembered that the cloud is estimated
at night as well as during the day, hence there appears to
be a want of consistency which is not real because the columns
of sunshine and cloud are not comparable.
The distribution of sunshine throughout the year (see
Table I.) has been disturbed by May’s excess.
iol
SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY.
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132
‘SaHOOdN ANIHSNODS
Tl HTaViL
NOTES ON THE RAINFALL AT SARK, HERM
AND ALDERNEY, DURING THE YEAR 1909.
BY BASIL T. ROWSWELL.
THROUGH the continued and kindly co-operation of Captain
Henry, of La Vallée du Creux, Sark, and of Mr. W. J. Picot,
of Le Huret, Alderney, I am again able to supplement
Mr. Collenette’s valuable paper on the year’s rainfall at
Guernsey by a Table giving the rainfall at Sark and
Alderney with, in addition, a few notes on the weather
experienced in those islands and at Herm as compared with
our own. On the other hand, it is with regret that I have
to report the closing of the station at Herm, but, owing
to an unexpected change vf observer, the readings there
became unreliable because of difficulties in the way of a
systematic visit to the gauge presenting themselves. The
station was therefore definitely closed at the beginning of
July. I must, however, tender very hearty thanks to Mr.
Leicester Gore, with whose help the station was kept open
for three years.
The year 1909 both at Sark and Alderney, as at
Guernsey, proved decidedly more rainy than its predecessor.
At Sark the difference was 7.62in. and at Alderney 8 97 in.
This great increase of rainfall, however, was not supported
by a proportionate increase in thenumber of “rain days,” and
here again we have complete agreement with the Guernsey
observations. The explanation of course is that 1909 had a
bigger number of heavy falls than 1908, a statement amply
borne out by the figures in the Table. In 1908 it was
apparently always raining more or less, but in such small
quantity the totals grew very slowly; in 1909 rain fell
practically as often (at Alderney indeed somewhat oftener)
as in 1908, but with much better effect as regards the
ageregate rainfall.
The stations at Sark and Alderney have not been
established a sufficiently long time to allow of an average
being worked out for those islands, but since at Guernsey the
[1909.]
134 RAINFALL AT SARK, HERM AND ALDERNEY.
year (1909) was again a dry one (the 5th in succession), it is
reasonable to suppose that the twelvemonth as a whole was
also dry in the smaller islands, although, as already stated,
much less so than in 1908. But if averages are as yet out of
the question, one thing seems pretty clearly established as a
result of the four years’ observations, viz., that Sark is a
decidedly drier place than Alderney, while as regards Herm
the available material seems to point to its occupying an
intermediate position. (ruernsey, there is no doubt, heads
the list as the wettest island of the group.
And here, in connection with the rainfall shortage of
the last few years and the probable cause of it, I should
like to quote from a letter of Dr. H. R. Mill, the Chief
of the British Rainfall Organization, to Mature of October
28th, 1909. Writing on “ Drought in South-West Ireland,”
he says :—** It is frequently found that parts of the country
often quite narrow strips, show a marked deficiency of rainfall
for several successive years, and afterwards revert to an
average condition or show an excess. The most probable
explanation seems to be a change, perhaps a slight one, in
the prevailing tracks of the centres of barometric minima,
but I have not found data in a form suitable for testing
the truth of the suggestion.” It will be extremely interesting
to hear of corroborative evidence in support of Dr. Mill’s
suggestion for we know that, quite apart from other people’s
experience, our own rainfall has given anxiety and been the
subject of considerable comment from the water supply point
of view in recent years.
That our springs are entirely dependent for their supply
upon the rainfall I for one do not doubt—indeed I am in the
possession of evidence very much on the side of this theory.
Since the autumn of 1901 I have taken regular measurements
of the depth of water in our well at Les Blanches, and a
comparison of the figures with the rainfall totals shows quite
clearly, for instance, that the very low springs of 1902 and
1909 followed, in each case, a remarkably dry year. These
two unusually dry years, viz., 1901 and 1908, are by a long
way the driest at St. Martin’s of the period 1894-1909, and,
beginning with 1902, the spring in that year and in 1909
averaged much lower than in any of the six intervening years
of much bigger rainfall. And as an illustration of a wet
twelvemonth being followed by abundance of water in the
well I can instance the years 1903 and 1904. The rainfall of
1903 is the biggest at Les Blanches of the last 16 years, and
in 1904 the springs literally overflowed their banks. At
wit =—
RAINFALL AT SARK, HERM AND ALDERNEY. = 135
St. Martin’s the average height of water in 1904 was seven
feet against three feet only in 1902 and in 1909.
But I must now return more particularly to the weather
of 1909 in the smaller islands as recorded by the rainfall
registered there. The year began with a dry month and by
a curious coincidence, as shown in the Table, the total
measurement at Sark and Herm was exactly similar. An
“ absolute ” drought, which in the technical sense of the word
means an interval of more than 14 days without any rain at
all, was noted by Capt. Henry, at Sark, in January. It
began on the 19th of the month and ended on February 2nd,
having lasted 15 days. Droughts in the winter portion of
the year are rarities—at any rate at Guernsey.
In February, an exceptionally dry month, Sark narrowly
escaped another drought, for no rain fell at the station for 14
days, viz., from the 12th to the 25th. Alderney on the other
hand enjoyed one of 15 days’ duration, for Mr. Picot’s returns
show that no rain fell there from the 12th to the 26th. At
Les Blanches (Guernsey), because of the occurrence of slight
precipitation during both the January and February dry
spells, no drought was noted. Apart from these small
technicalities, however, and speaking practically, the weather
was just as dry im all the islands.
At the end of February and the beginning of March a
sharp, cold snap reigned over the Bailiwick and we experienced
a week of snowy conditions. Snow fell in varying amounts at
all the stations from February 26th to March 4th and keen
frosts occurred. Alderney appears to have had most snow and
and Sark least, for the seven (lays’ precipitation yielded 0°86 in.
of water in the former island and 0°60 in. only in the latter,
Les Blanches (Guernsey) with 0°76 in. occupying an inter-
mediate position.
Throughout the Bailiwick March was the second wettest
month of the year. From beginning to end we were treated
to an unbroken succession of depressions the passage of which
kept the barometer unusually low and the rain gauges
continuously busy. Several dry days, it is true, occurred
both at Sark and Alderney, but at Les Blanches (Guernsey )
one day only out of the thirty-one proved dry.
April began dry everywhere and continued so until past
the middle of the month—indeed but for a little rain at the
several stations on the 12th (Kaster Monday) another drought
would have been put on record as the change to unsettled
only set in on the 17th. Two days later, during the afternoon
of the 19th, an early spring thunderstorm burst over the
136 RAINFALL AT SARK, HERM AND ALDERNEY.
islands quite unexpectedly. In (Guernsey at any rate the
electrical disturbance was not particularly severe and here
too (Les Blanches) the rainfall, 0°64 in., was slightest. At
Herm the thunder shower yielded 0°72 in. of water, at
Alderney 0°77 in., but at Sark no less than 1:10in, It is
rather curious to note in this connection that in spite of Sark
being recognized, and rightly so I think, as the driest of the
islands, it was, this distinction notwithstanding, the first
station to register an inch of rainfall in 1909.
With the advent of May a sudden return to very dry
weather occurred, a return as sudden as that which developed
at the beginning of April, only on this occasion it lasted
without break until the 24th of the month when the passage
of a shght thunderstorm at night brought a 23 days’ drought
to an abrupt end everywhere. Herm, for a change, had the
heaviest of the thunder rain this time, just over half-an-
inch (0°54 in.) being reported, while Alderney had the
comparatively small amount of 0°13 in. only. The month of
May was extremely dry at Alderney, the total measurement,
0°22 in., making it the driest month in that island during the
four years 1906—1909.
June opened with an unusually wet week occasioned
principally by a depression which hung about in our neigh-
bourhood from the lst to the 4th, and in addition to heavy
downponrs gave intensely gloomy skies and a yery low
temperature. The persistence with which the low pressure
area clung to us was, indeed, remarkable, and we know that
wretchedly unseasonable as our weather was far worse
conditions were experienced along the south coast of England.
At Les Blanches (Guernsey) the depression gave two falls of
over one inch each and a total for the four days of 2°87 in. ;
at Sark where as much as 1°38in. was measured by Capt.
Henry on the 3rd, the total reached 2°39 in. Alderney had a
total of 2°12 in., and no inch fall, the heaviest being 0°93 in.
on the Ist. The deluge at Sark on the 3rd is the biggest
daily fall in that island since observations were begun in
January, 1906. Qn the night of the 21st a thunderstorm is
reported to have occurred at Alderney.
Broken weather was our lot throughout July, but no
thunderstorms passed because the distribution of atmospheric
pressure was not favourable to their occurrence in the islands.
Easterly winds, with a high barometer over England, are the
ideal conditions for summer thunderstorms here, whereas
westerly winds, and consequently relatively low pressure over
England, was the prevailing distribution.
RAINFALL AT SARK, HERM AND ALDERNEY. 137
Again, as in April and May, all the early part of August
was anticyclonic and dry. At Sark no rain fell from July
28th to August 16th inclusive, or for:0 days. At Alderney
the drought was of 16 days’ duration only, it having begun
four days later in that island. Very warmand sunny weather
was experienced during the prevalence of this drought—in
fact it was practically our sole taste of summer this year.
The heat burst began on the 5th, and ended on the 16th with
the approach of showery weather which lasted rather over a
week.
The figures for September, given in the Table, show a
marked difference in the totals for the two smaller islands.
The Alderney amount is actually double that for Sark with
which island we may also couple Les Blanches (Guernsey)
where the month’s aggregate was 1°84in. One day’s rainfall,
Friday, the 10th, appears to have been responsible for the
difference. On that and the following day the centre of a
well-marked but not deep depression lay over Brittany, and in
some way or other Alderney managed to get included in a
portion of the system from which very heavy precipitation
occurred. “At any rate against 0°15 in. only at Sark and
U°24in. at Les Blanches (Guernsey), Alderney had no less
than 1°49in.—an inch and a-half practically. It fell during
the might from the 10th to the 11th, and in writing about it
Mr. Picot said :—*“ Rarely has there been in Alderney such a
downpour of rain.” It 1s interesting also to note, by the way,
that the area of tremendous rain must have stretched right
across the Channel, for the observer at Portland Bill recorded
1:07in. for the same day. In the afternoon of the 7th
September, “a huge waterspout” was seen seven miles N.E.
of Braye Roadstead, Alderney.
October was a particularly wet and unsettled period.
At Les Blanches (Guernsey) the month’s total rainfall,
7°18 in., has only been exceeded three times as a monthly total
in the sixteen years 1894—1909. At Sark itis the wettest
month on record so far, while Alderney can show but one
worse—October, 1907, with 7°97 in. It was a typical October,
not cold, but boisterous, wet and gloomy with, in addition, at
Alderney, thunder and lightning on the 8th and 24th. Sark
had an unusually large number of heavy showers this month ;
on five occasions the gauge contained over half-an-inch of
rain and on five other occasions the measurement reached or
exceeded a quarter of an inch. Heavy rainfalls are not by
any means the rule at Sark, but of course exceptions will
occur from time to time.
k
138 RAINFALL AT SARK, HERM AND ALDERNEY.
Unusually big as was the downpour at Alderney on
September 10th, that island was destined to record a still
heavier fall on November 15th—the heaviest daily fall in
fact registered by Mr. Picot during the four years he has had
charge of the station. And, again, the visitation was peculiar
to Alderney, for whereas the amount for that day was 0°41 in.
at Sark and 0°54 in. at Les Blanches (Guernsey), Alderney
had 1°551in., and the report ran :—‘'There is no mistake.
The rainfall that day and night was so exceptional here
(Alderney) that old folks aver never having seen such . ,
Rain came down continuously, at times as if by a waterspout.”
November, on the whole, was not at all a disagreeable month,
considerable dry intervals, for the season, were enjoyed in all
the islands, and owing to the prevalence of Easterly and
Northerly winds, temperature ranged low.
December began with very boisterous weather. Several
deep depressions passed and a lot of rain fell during the first
week. At Alderney “a heavy thunderstorm with much
lightning and rain passed over” on the evening of the 3rd, and
at night on the 6th electrical disturbance was again noted.
The week’s rainfall amounted to :—Sark, 2°10 in. ; Alderney,
2°42 in.; Les Blanches (Guernsey), 2°28 in. No settled
weather occurred during December, while the middle of the
month was cold and frosty. Alderney reported a fall of wet
snow on the 15th, and on the 20th, “hard frost and ice.”
The 20th was a cold day, too, at Guernsey—indeed frost held
the whole time in the shade and a minimum temperature of
30°6 deg. was recorded by the screened instrument at Les
Blanches.
Mention has been made of the fact that Sark is proving
itself a decidedly drier island than either Alderney or
Guernsey. Leaving Guernsey out of the discussion in the
present Report, the average difference between Sark and —
Alderney for the four years 1906—1909 is 4°40in. In 1906
and 1907 the actual difference was 2°56 and 2°69in. respect-
ively ; in 1908 it increased to 5°51 in. and last year was no
less than 6°86in. Last year’s big difference is in part at any
rate accounted for by the two exceptionally heavy downpours
of September and November, both of which Sark may be
said to have missed altogether.
RAINFALL AT SARK, HERM AND ALDERNEY. 139
ABSOLUTE DROUGHTS.
An Absolute Drought is a “period of more than 14
consecutive days no one of which is a rain day.”
Sark.
January 19 to February 2 = 15 days.
Wha yeh COIZ3.. sc sswttescescss: Oar
SONNE! (A LOND Weekes), eceien due +e a Ny
July 28 to August 16...... = 20h
Alderney.
Ereprugty 12°t0: 26 ..6...0.. = 15 days.
My 10 aon oe =, 93a
Postel CO. Gea .ee sob este 5s == ||) es
PARTIAL DROUGHTS.
A Partial Drought is a “period of more than 28 con-
secutive days, the mean rainfall of which does not exceed
Ol in. per day.”
Sark.
July 10 to August 16 = 38 days with a total of 0°31 in.
of rain which fell on 7 days.
Alderney.
April 80 to May 31 = 32 days with a total of 0°29 in. of
rain which fell on 5 days.
LONGEST RAIN SPELL.
Inclusive dates giving the longest unbroken succession of
rain days in each island for the year.
Sark.
November 27 to December 7 = 11 days with a total of
2°80 in. of rain.
Alderney.
_ January 6 to 16 = 11 days with a total of 1°83 in. of
rain.
RAINFALL AT SARK, HERM AND ALDERNEY.
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LOCAL RESEARCH.
1910.
DPESSOSSSSSOSSOSSCHSSSSSOOHOSCHOOOS
GHarevwsey :
: BIOHARD'S PRINTING AND PUBLISHING isaeeae: er
BORDAGE STREET.
sae
Me
{s
GUERNSEY
— SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCE
AND
LOCAL RESEARCH.
REPURT AND TRANSAUTIONS.
1910.
GHirerwsey :
BICHARD’S PRINTING AND (ee COMPANY, LIMITED,
BORDAGE STREET.
COUNGCIb FOR THE YEAR 1911.
SII IO NONI IDA
PRESIDENT:
LIEUTENANT-COLONEL T. W. M. DE GUERIN.
VICE=PRESIDENTS:
Mr. EK. D. MARQUAND, A.L.S.
Mr. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
Mr. G. T. DERRICK.
Mr. W. SHARP.
Dr. J. AIKMAN, M.D., C.M., L.R.C.S.
REV. W. CAMPBELL PENNEY, M.A., Principal of Elizabeth
College.
REv. G. E. LEE, M.A., F.S.A., Rector of St. Peter-Port.
Mr. WILLIAM CAREY, Bailiff.
HON. SECRETARY: HON. TREASURER:
Mr. H. E. MARQUAND. Mr. C. G. DE LA MARE.
COUNCIL:
Mr. J. LINWOOD PITTS, M.J.I., F.S.A. (Normandy).
Mr. F. L. TANNER, L.D.S., F.R.C.S.
Miss A. L. MELLISH, M.A.
Mr. B. T. ROWSWELL.
Rev. F. EK. LOWH, M.A.
Miss M, BROWNE, B.A.
LIST OF MEMBERS (910).
-_—_ —_-—___———_-@—-—_-_-- —_—_
1891—Aikman, Dr., M.D., C.M., L.R.C.S.
. Queen’s Road.
.. Queen’s Road.
. Gothic Cottage, St. Martin’s.
1903—Aikman, Mrs.
1903—Aikman, Miss
1904—Allés, Mr. G. F..
1897—Ashburne, Miss R.
1903—Benson, Dr., M.D., C.M., a R. ©. a)
.. Saumarez Place.
. Gazette Office.
Tn Gueen :
1882—Bichard, Mr. T. M. ..
1904—Bishop, Mr. Julius, Jurat
Royal Court..
1903— Bishop, Dr. Henry Draper, M. De
MORC.S, UR
1907—Bisson, Mr. T.
1904—Blampied, Mr. C..
1910—Blicq, Mr. J. E...
1907—Bostock, Miss 5
1909—Brown, Miss Mary, B. A
1907—Buller, Dr. sé
1889—Carey, Mr. F.
1890—Carey, Mr. J. J., F.R. G. S.
1897—Carey, Miss E.
1908—Carey, Mr. T. W.
1891—Carey, Mr. William,
_, Guernsey. ......; »-
1890—Carré, Miss B. ve
1907—Chalmers, Mr. A. L...
1911—Cheeswright, Miss E. 8S. ..
1882—Collenette, Mr. A., F.C.S.
1882—Collings, Colonel A. H.
1890—Collings, Miss M. B...
1911—Colbron, Mr. KE. R. ..
1882—Cole, Miss R..
1910—Coles, Dr. E. A..
1906—Corbin. Dr. E. K. , M.R. 0. S..
1908—Corbin, Miss R. :
1899—Cromartie, Mr. D. B.
1906—Cumber, Mr. san
1893—De Guérin, Lieut.-Col. T. Ww. M..
1893—De Guérin, Miss C. M.
1906—De Jersey, Colonel Grant..
1882—De La Mare, Mr. C. G.
Queen’s Road.
. Granville House.
. Grange.
. 7, Grange-road.
. The Laurels, Vale.
.. La Fosse, St. Martin’s.
.. Brock Road.
.. Smith Street.
. Ladies’ College.
. Carlson Crescent, Southampton.
.. Summerland, Mount Durand.
.. Cobo,
. Cambridge Park Road.
. Somerset Place, Queen’s Road.
.- Queen’s Road.
. Elm Grove.
.. Corbiére, St. Pierre-du-Bois. -
.. The Studio, Sark.
. Fort Road.
. Grange.
. 24, Saumarez Street.
.. 39, Canichers.
.. Mount Row.
. Saumarez Street.
.. Stanley Road.
. Norfolk Lodge, Doyle Road.
Fountain Street.
his Mont Durand, Mount Row.
.. Le Mont Durand, Mount Row.
.. Grange Lodge.
.. Crotites.
LIST OF MEMBERS.
1882—Derrick, Mr. G. T.
1894—De Saumarez, Lord ..
1893—Durand, Colonel C. J..
1906—Falla, Mr. A. ao ite,
1904—Fleure, Dr. Herbert i, “be nee
1908—Foote, Advocate W. i.
1896—Foster, Miss F. A. .. ..
1905—Guilbert, Mr. T. J., States Beever
1882—Guille, Miss S. ane aioe
1893—Harvey, General. .
1906—Henry, Mr. S. M.
1893—Hocart, Mr. J. 8S.
1911—Hocart, Jurat A. J. ..
1906—Irish, Mr. John W. B.
1903—Kelson, Mrs.
1884—Lee, Rev. G. E., MLA., Fr 8. A
1882—Le Cocq, Mr. Sarin ace
1893—Le Cocq, Captain
1907—Le Feuvre, Miss C.
1903—Le Mottée, Colonel G. H., eee of
. Hauteville.
the Royal Court .
1882—Lowe, Rev. F. E., Nee F.E.S.,
Membre de la Société Lepidop-
tére de Genéve
1911—Luff, Mr. BE. A... ..
1903—Macleane, Mr. E. F. H.
the Royal Court ..
1888—Marquand, Mr. E. D., A.L.S...
1896—Marquand, Mr. H.E.. .. .
1907—Mauger, Mr. H. E., H.M.’s Sheriff
1900—Mellish, Miss A. L., M.A..
1908—Mesny, Rev. P. S., NIAC...
1908—Moon, Miss A. is
1905—Naftel, Mr. A. M.
1907—Nicolle, Mr. E. T.
1882—Paen, Mr. J.8S as
1899—Penfold, Rev. J. B..V.
1889—Penney, Rev. W. C., M.A. :
1882—Pitts, Mr. J. L., F.S.A. (Normandy)
£908—Priaulx, Mr. N. W... .. «2 »
1906—Randell, Miss Clare ..
1896—Robilliard, Mr. P. E..
1903—Robinson, Dr. E. L.,
ei. CEs
1911—Ross-Taylor, Dr. :
1904—Rowswell, Mr. B. T...
1906—Semple, Dr. Macphun
M.B.C.S.,
145
. King’s Road.
.. 43, Grosvenor-sq., London, S.W.
.. Grange Villa.
.. Les Hauteurs, Vale.
. University College, Aberystwyth.
. 6, New Street.
. Granville House.
Rohais.
.. Cressington, Gravées.
.. Oakleigh, Mount Durand.
.. Mount Row.
.. Les Mielles, Vale.
.. Blanc Bois, Castel.
.. Elm Grove.
.. Doyle Road.
. George Place, Union Street.
. Clifton Lodge.
. Beau Séjour, Cambridge Park-rd.
. 3, Brock Terrace, Grange Road.
. St. Stephen’s Vicarage.
. La Chaumiére, Brock Road.
. La Bigoterie.
1894—Mainguy, General F. B., Jurat of
. Les Rocquettes.
. Knyghtwood, St. Martin’s.
Star Office
King’s Road.
.. Ladies’ College.
. Catel Rectory.
.. King’s Road.
.. 13, George Road.
.. 2, Norfolk Terrace, Jersey.
.. King’s Road.
.. Grange.
. Elizabeth College.
Canichers.
. Mount Row.
.. Grove End, Doyle Road.
. La Piette.
. Melrose, Gravées.
.. Les Blanches, St. Martin’s.
. Eaton Place.
146 LIST OF MEMBERS.
1883—Sharp, Mr. W. ..... .. .. .. ‘*Sherborne,’’ Rocquettes.
1907—Sinel, Mr. Joseph .. .. .. .«.. 12, Royal Crescent, Jersey.
1909-—Spencer, Mr. R. P. ... .., .. ~... Brock Read:
1909—Standen, Miss J. os) «+ «sss 0, Doyle Wermace:
1911—Standen, Miss H. .. +» Doyle Terrace, Doyle Road.
1903—Tanner, Mr. F. L., L. D. S., 'F. R.C. S, Vauvert House.
1905—Tanner, Mrs... . os) «se o» Vatvert Houses
1908—Terry, Rev. G., B.A... .. .. «.. Montville, St. Martin’s.
1893—Tourtel, Rev. R. Ee, “ak A ne
F.S.A. (Nonmande .. .. .. Lorteval Rectory.
1906—Végeais, Miss .. .. .. «. Brock Road.
1903—Wild, Dr. H.S., M.R.C. s., Te RC: P. Gravées.
1908—W oolcombe, De Rebertauion ds M.A,
LL.D., F.R.G.S., M.R.I.A. .. 14, Waterloo Road, Dublin.
well
In Memoriam.
ee
WILLIAM AMBRIDGE LUFF,
BORN 4th FEBRUARY, 1851; DIED 19th MAY, 1910.
HE Guernsey Society of Natural Science has this year
sustained a very grievous loss by the untimely death of
my lamented friend, Mr. WiLLIAM AMBRIDGE LUFF, who
for over a quarter of a century had been one of its staunchest
friends and supporters. On a memorable day in October 1882
it was resolved to form a Society having for its object the
systematic study of the Natural History and Archeology of
Guernsey and the neighbouring islands. Mr. LUFF was one
of the leading spirits in this movement, and since that date
his interest never flagged for a single moment in the work
being done by the Society he loved so well. It was always
with a feeling of pride that he would point to the volumes on
his bookshelves comprising the Transactions of the Society
for twenty-two years ; and twenty-two years of uninterrupted
activity is no ordinary measure of life in a small insular
Society like ours.
Very early in life young LurF began to manifest a keen
interest in butterflies and beetles ; and as time went on the
study and collecting of insects became his sole hobby and
delight. Every hour that could be snatched from a business
that kept him closely occupied, was devoted to the study of
Entomology ; but the insect-fauna of the Channel Islands
was always to him of paramount interest. Thousands of
specimens from other parts of the world had a place in his
cabinets, and were necessary for study and comparison ; but a
single specimen captured in the Channel Islands was in his
sight worth ten taken elsewhere. During more than forty
years’ collecting in the different islands of the Channel Archi-
148 IN MEMORIAM.
pelago he amassed a vast store of insects of all kinds, and
the entire collection well illustrates the effect of prolonged
isolation on certain species, and the modifications they under-
go under different local conditions.
But although LurFr was first and foremost an Ento-
mologist, he did not shut his eyes to other interesting matters.
In the course of business he frequently had opportunities
of snapping up unconsidered trifles which would perhaps
have been overlooked by the majority of people; and thus
in the course of years he gradually acquired a considerable
collection of books, pamphlets, engravings, maps and prints
relating to Guernsey and its sister islands.
It is hardly necessary to mention our friend’s official
connection with this Society. All the members are aware
that at the time of his death he held the office of Honorary
Treasurer—a post he had ably filled for a period of over
twenty-five years. In 1898 -he was unanimously elected
President of the Society, and in accordance with established
rule he occupied the chair for two years. From the very
commencement Mr. LUFF was a member of the Council
of the Society, and although he rarely spoke much at the
meetings, his opinion always carried weight on any subject
that was discussed. Everything that he did was always
done quietly and without ostentation, for he was by nature
gentle, peaceable and diffident to a remarkable degree. Of
his private and social life I know very little, although I
enjoyed his friendship for over twenty years; but I should
imagine he was a man who never lost a friend or made an
enemy.
The management of a large business left him but little
leisure for the pursuit of his favourite study, and yet he
always managed to lend a helping hand in any work that had
for its object the study of Natural Science. Many a young
entomologist owes his early training to the practical instruc-
tion given by Mr. Lurr during the summer excursions which
the Society arranged for the benefit of junior members, and
I well remember with what untiring energy he collected the
IN MEMORIAM. . 149
Fungi of the island during a whole twelvemonth, when I was
compiling the list for my Flora of Guernsey ten years ago.
Many other persons helped me generously, but the lion’s share
of the work was done by Mr. LuFF.
A characteristic of our late friend was the scrupulous
fidelity with which he acknowledged the work done by others
even in his own line; and the grateful recognition of any
service, however trifling, rendered to him in his own special
researches. Another characteristic was his love of accuracy.
He was no slipshod worker. All the insects about which he
had the slightest doubt were submitted to one or other of the
recognised authorities on the subject, and in this way many a
rarity, or even occasionally an unsuspected novelty, was
brought to hght.
In the year 1899 he discovered a very curious mealy-bug
living at the roots of sea spurrey on the coast of Gruernsey
near Richmond. It proved to be an unknown species, and
Mr. Newstead described it under the name of Dactylopius
Tiunffit. In 1903 a sand-wasp new to science was found in
Jersey, and named Ammophila Luffii by the late Mr. Edward
Saunders. A very tiny moth whose larva resides in cone-
shaped cases made from the lichen on which it feeds, was
identified as the type of entirely new genus, and the insect
was described under the name of Luffia lapidella, “in honour
of the entomologist who first succeeded in breeding both the
sexes from larve found in Guernsey.” It is pleasant to know
that the name of our friend will thus be preserved in the
annals of entomology ; and in botany his name is identified
with a fungus—Omphalia Luffii—first discovered by him at
Lihou Island. It was on the recommendation of two or three
eminent entomologists who were well acquainted with his
work that Mr. Lurr was in 1903 elected a Fellow of the
Entomological Society of London.
The principal portion of Lurr’s published notes and
papers are to be found in the T’ransactions of this Society ;
but as early as 1873 he was a contributor to the Entomologist,
and the correspondent of Edward Newman and Henry
150 IN MEMORIAM.
Doubleday. From time to time communications from his pen
appeared in various other Journals. But, as just stated, most
of his work is recorded in our Proceedings, and its scope and
extent will best be estimated by the following list of the
papers be read before this Society in different years :—
The Butterflies of Guernsey and Sark (1832).
The Moths (Macro-lepidoptera) of Guernsey, Alderney, Sark
and Herm (1889).
The Hemiptera-Heteroptera of Guernsey (1890).
The Neuroptera of Guernsey (1891).
The Cicadee or Tettigide of Guernsey (1892).
Additions to the Hemiptera-Heteroptera (1892).
The Coleoptera of Guernsey (1893).
The Aculeate-Hymenoptera of Guernsey (1894).
The Diptera of Guernsey (1895).
The Orthoptera of Guernsey (1896).
The Tenthredinide (Sawflies) of Guernsey (1896),
Additions to the list of Guernsey Diptera (1896).
The Insects of Alderney (1897).
The Micro-lepidoptera of Guernsey (1898).
The Insects of Alderney (1899).
Presidential Address (1900).
Additions to the list of Alderney Insects (1900).
The same—second paper (1902).
The Chrysididz, Ichneumonidz and Braconide of Guernsey
(1903).
The Coccidz of Guernsey (1903).
The Insects of Herm (1904).
The Insects of Jethou (1904).
The Aphides of Guernsey (1905).
The Insects of Sark (1906).
The non-British Insects of the Sarnian Islands (1907).
The Insects of Jersey (1908).
Additions to the Insects of Sark (1909).
The Pezomachi (Ichneumonidz) of Guernsey (1909).
The above enumeration sufficiently shows the extent and
thoroughness of Mr. Lurr’s work. Any unrecorded insects
that were discovered subsequently to the printing of these
papers were each year entered up in supplementary lists
appended to the annual Entomological Reports, and by this
means the known insect fauna of the islands was always kept
accurately up to date.
There are probably few places in the United Kingdom
where the insects have been so well worked up as Guernsey.
IN MEMORIAM. 151
Several thousands of species are recorded; and it is very
certain that a considerable number which used to occur have
now disappeared owing to building, draining, quarrying and
the reclamation of waste land. Immense changes have taken
place in Guernsey since those far-away days in the sixties
when young LurrF first began to collect butterflies and
moths ; and the work he has accomplished during the suc-
ceeding period could never be done now. But, happily, all is
on record, and what is done has been done well.
Another name has to be inscribed on the roll of Guern-
sey-men who have made their mark in the world of science.
One of these days it is to be hoped some member of this
Society will compile a series of biographical sketches of the
Sarnian naturalists, giving details of their lives and their
work. When this is done, an important place will certainly
be reserved for the entomologist who forms the subject of this
imperfect and inadequate memoir.
EK. D. Marquanp.
Paris, November 25, 1910.
OBITUARY.
—@—
The following obituary notice, headed “Wi1LLIAM
AMBRIDGE LuFF, F.E.S.,” appears in the Kntomologist’s
Record :—
A large circle of entomologists will hear with great regret
that WILLIAM AMBRIDGE LUFF is gone from us. He died
at his residence, La Chaumiére, Guernsey, on Thursday, 19th
May, aged 59. From an early childhood he was ardently
attached to the study of Nature, saving his pence for the
purchase of collecting apparatus. His life was one of singu-
lar energy, though outwardly remarkable for quiet manner
and unruffled calm. Very early, by the death of his father,
he was called upon to take the responsibility of an important
cabinet maker’s and upholsterer’s. business, and the practical
fatherhood of his younger brothers and sisters. This is not
the place to speak of his personal character, but it is not too
much to say that he was held in universal respect and esteem
by all who were privileged to know him. He leaves a widow,
two sons and a daughter to mourn his loss. As a citizen he
took an interest in public affairs, and has held various impor-
tant offices in what in Guernsey is equivalent to municipal
government. He was a valued member of the council of that
excellent institution the Guille-Allés Library, and a chief
influence in the founding of the Guernsey Society of Natural
Science and Local Research, of which, frum its initiation
to the day of his death, he was Hon. Treasurer. He was
elected President at the fifteenth annual meeting of the
Society, a post which is tenable for two years, and delivered
his address on retiring on December 19, 1900. He had
amassed vast collections of local insects in nearly every
department of entomology, and it is to be hoped that these
may be retained intact and held in competent keeping for the
OBITUARY. 153
benefit and education of Guernsey. He had also formed a
valuable library of entomological books and other works and
engravings connected with his native place, and had lately
added to his house two capacious rooms for the reception of
these treasures. It is a touching circumstance that, on the
Saturday, feeling suddenly a great increase of his illness, and
walking with extreme difficulty, he made his way to the door
of his “ Museum,” and clinging to the door which he had
opened, took a long silent look around, before being led up to
his bed from which he never rose again.
W. A. Lurr has made his own name and place in the
entomological history of the Channel Isles—and can never
have a successor. He has done a pioneer work which will
donbtless receive additions from other hands, and may ocea-
sionally require correction, but it will never need to be done
again. He has systematised our knowledge of the entomolo-
gical fauna of Guernsey in particular, and of the Channel
Isles in general. Every worker in the same field will be
indebted to Mr. Lurr. All his life he had been collecting
material, and his lists of the various families of insects, indi-
genous to the Channel Isles, have extended over a period of
nearly thirty years. We need not point out the value of such
diligent and systematic work to the cause of science. His
knowledge, though chiefly confined to the insects of his own
home, was thorough, his industry unfailing, and his gifts of
observation unusually acute and accurate. We think it doubt-
ful if any corresponding portion of Great Britain has been so
exhaustively searched, and the results as minutely recorded by
any one entomologist, as the Island of (Guernsey and _ its
dependencies, by the subject of our notice. He, more fre-
quently before the foundation of the Guernsey Society of
Natural Science, 1882, contributed notes to the various ento-
mological periodicals, but his chief and lasting work is to be
found in the Transactions of the local Society. In these
pages, from the first publication in 1882 to within a few weeks
of his death, appear, year by year, carefully compiled lists of
insects in all departments, recorded for Guernsey. He began
154 OBITUARY.
with the Macro-lepidoptera, using as a basis Ansted’s not very
reliable earlier attempt to record the fauna of Guernsey. He
ended on December 15, 1909. In cases admitting of doubt,
he was particular to submit his insects to the critical inspec-
tion of specialists in England. This brief list of his principal
contributions to the “ Transactions of the Natural Science
Society” will best show the wide field of his investigations.
1882—“ The Butterflies of Guernsey and Sark;” “A List
of the Nocturnal Macros of Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and
Herm ;” 1890 and 1892—‘“ The Hemiptera- Heteroptera of
Guernsey ;” 1891—“ A List of the Neuroptera of Guernsey ;”
1895—“ Diptera ;” 1896—‘“ The Orthoptera ;” 1897 -1900—
‘* Three Papers and Lists of the Insects of Alderney ;”? 1902—
“The Cicade ;”” 1903—“ The Coleoptera ;” 1904—“'The Acu-
leate Hymenoptera ;” “The Coccide of Guernsey,” “ The
Insects of Herm and Jethou ;”” 1906—*“ The Insects of Sark ;”
1908—“ The Insects of Jersey.”
EF. HE. .
TRANSACTIONS OF THE SOCIETY.
SSE
Monthly Meeting held Thursday, January 26th, Colonel De
Guérin in the chair in the absence of the Bailiff, the President.
Mr. Collenette read his annual paper on the Rainfall and
Sunshine of the Bailiwick.
The sunshine for 1909 was 50 hours above the average ;
the record for May was one which is not likely to be surpassed,
for while the average is 7°9 hours per day, this year it rose to
10°9 hours per day; there was some sunshine every day.
The temperature of the year was below the average.
The rainfall, though below the average, was 7°78 inches
more than in 1908. The records appear to show that the
greatest rainfall occurs over the town, decreasing towards the
south and west.
The lecture was, as usual, illustrated by diagrams thrown
on the lantern screen.
A short discussion ensued. A hearty vote of thanks was
awarded to Mr. Collenette for his trouble in making slides, &c.
The seventh Annual Soirée was held in the Lecture Hall
of the Guille-Allés Library on Tuesday, February 8th.
There was a large audience.
The President, W. Carey, Esq., Bailiff, opened the pro-
ceedings. The members of the Society, he said, were not
themselves able to provide all the items on the programme,
but they gave hearty thanks to the ladies and gentlemen who
were assisting in the musical department. The Society had
been carrying on most valuable and interesting work for many
years and published annual Transactions, a costly matter.
These Soirées assisted in raising funds to meet the expenses
of printing. He hoped the publicity given to the work of the
Society at this meeting would induce ladies and gentlemen to
become members.
The items of the musical portion of the programme
proved most enjoyable. Four quartettes were sung by
the Misses M. Standen and A. Willoughby and Messrs.
Goodman and A. Lee. The last of these quartettes,
“Sobbing Quartette,” provoked an encore, and the last
156 MEETINGS.
verse was repeated. Fraulein Anna Philipp, a really bril-
liant pianiste, played a “ Rhapsodie” (Liszt) in splendid
style. An enthusiastic encore followed, and Fraulein Philip
favoured with a second selection. Miss Agnes Willoughby
sang “ Sognia-Reverie” (Schira), and Miss Ruth Edmonds
contributed a violin solo “ Adagio-Canzonetta” (Godard),
playing with her customary ability.
The first of the lecturers was Mr. E. D. Marquand.
A.L.S., who chose as his subject “ Life in a Rockpool.”
In the course of a lecture which occupied little more than
ten minutes, Mr. Marquand succeeded in conveying a striking
word picture of a typical half-tide rock pool. The lecture
throughout was brimful of interest, and was also instructive.
Mr. Marquand dealt specially with “animal plants” (sea
anemones), zoophytes, star-fish and sea-urchins. The lecture
was illustrated with lantern slides, specially striking pictures
being shown of transverse sections of the spines of the sea
urchin.
Mr. A. Collenette, F.C.S., lectured on “Types of
Heavenly Bodies.” This lecture, too, which was fully
illustrated, proved both interesting and instructive. The
lecturer briefly referred to the different types of “ heavenly
bodies ”—dark worlds seen only in the light of other heavenly
bodies, dark worlds intermediate, bodies giving out heat
but no light, bodies giving out both heat and light, dark
stars, the presence of which can only be ascertained
by the eclipsing of light stars, &c. Interesting details were
given concerning all these different types, and attention was
drawn to the different colours of the stars—white, red, blue,
green and yellow. Finally Mr. Collenette dealt with comets,
showing the different types. |
Mr. F. L. Tanner, F.Z.S., lectured on “Some Great
Extinct Reptiles.” The speaker first showed a slide repre-
senting the four great ages, in which through the process
of evolution the living inhabitants of the world developed
from invertebrates to vertebrate amphibians, then to reptiles
of land, sea, and air, and finally to warm blooded mammalians.
Mr. Tanner dealt specially with the third great age—the
reptilian age. Fine illustrations of the wonderful reptiles
which lived on the earth in those days were shown, and
the peculiarities of development referred to. A touch of
humour was introduced by the showing of one of E. T. Reed’s
famous Punch pictures, “ Mixed bathing in prehistoric times.”
The soirée terminated with the National Anthem shortly
after 10 o’clock.
Led
MEETINGS. 157
Monthly Meeting held Wednesday, March 16th, 1910, at 8,
William Carey, Esq., President, in the chair.
The attendance of members numbered 28.
Mr. E. W. Sharp exhibited a full grown specimen of
Haliclystes octoradiatus found in Havelet Bay, February,
1910. Attention was called to the fact that one clump of
tentacles was bifurcated.
Mr E.'D. Marquand presented four “ Bulletins de
la Société d’Archéologie d’Avranches, for 1907 (Nos. 6, 7
and 8) and 1908" (Nos, een a) saalso: <> Proceedings of
the Linnean Society” for 1905 to 1909 (five Nos), and
fourteen unbound parts of the “Journal of the Linnean
Society ” published 1905 to 1909. Thanks to Mr. Marquand
the Library now possesses Vols. XXXVI., XXXVILI.
and XX XVIII of the “Journal” complete. Mr. Marquand
also presented ten, mounted and labelled, rare plants from
Guernsey and Alderney—a valuable addition to the Society’s
Herbarium. This donation includes specimens of Salvia
Marquandii, a species of Salvia new to science and found
apparently only at Vazon. The plant is described and
figured in the 1906 Transactions.
Mr. E. D. Marquand read a paper “ Rambles in Sark in
search of Wild Flowers.” This was a popular description of
what wild flowers the visitor to Sark may expect to find
in his rambles, with some brief reference to the Island’s
rarities. A hearty vote of thanks was accorded the lecturer
for his interesting paper, and Mr. W. Sharp, in calling
attention to the fact that Mr. Marquand was shortly leaving
Guernsey, said an immense debt of gratitude was owing
to him for his invaluable help to the Society, and he was sure
they were all very sorry to be losing him. This statement
was loudly endorsed by the meeting.
Mr. Eric W. Sharp read a paper entitled “ The Ascidians
of Guernsey,’ which he illustrated with drawings and -speci-
mens collected by himself. This valuable contribution to our
knowledge of these curious marine animals which frequently
form a conspicuous adornment of the rocks round our coast
was listened to with great interest, and the specimens handed
round fur examination were much admired. Mr. Sharp was
very heartily thanked for his excellent paper, and in the
discussion which followed Mr. EK. D. Marquand spoke most
highly of Mr. Sharp’s researches in Marine Zoology, and
congratulated the Society. on posssessing such an energetic
worker in this branch of Natural Science.
B
158 MEETINGS.
Mr. Tanner informed the meeting that he hoped to
organize excursions to the Gouilot Caves (Sark) in August
and September next, and he would be glad to hear of any
members of the Society who would like to join the party.
More definite announcements of the excursions would be made
later.
Mr. H. EK. Marquand (Editor of the Star) said he would
like to see the Society organize an excursion to the caves
between Moulin Huet and Petit-Port. He had _ himself
visited them on one occasion with friends. The caves were
so very unique in formation he felt sure the Society would
derive much pleasure from a visit. The easiest way to get to
them was by boat from Moulin Huet, the cliff descent at this
particular spot being rather dangerous.
Monthly Meeting held Wednesday, November 16th, 1910, at §,
William Carey, Esq., President, in the chair.
The attendance of members at this, the first meeting for
the season, numbered 18. Weather very rainy.
The two following gentlemen were elected members :—
Mr. EK. A. Luff, of Brock-road, proposed by
Mr. D. B. Cromartie, seconded by Mr. B. T. Rowswell.
Mr. J. EK. Blicq, of Bordage-street, proposed
by Mr. G. F. Allés, seconded by Mr. B. T. Rowswell.
Colonel de Guérin presented Déchelette’s ‘* Manuel d’Ar-
chéologie Préhistorique Celtique et Gallo-Romaine,” Part 2,
to the Society’s Library, and exhibited a large and interesting
collection of locally-found flint instruments. Some of these
had been picked up at Grande Rocque, Le Crocq, Créve
Coeur (L’Ancresse), and many were from the Colonel’s estate
at Le Mont Durant. At the latter place from 150 to 200
in all had been found and the Colonel was of opinion that the
spot marked the site of an old settlement.
Two valuable papers were afterwards read by Colonel
de Guérin, the first of which, “ Our Statue-Menhirs and those
of France and Italy,” was illustrated by 23 specially prepared
lantern pictures which included slides of the old stone figures
at St. Martin’s and the Castel churches. This dissertation
was very much enjoyed as was also the Colonel’s second paper,
“ Our Hereditary Governors.”
Brief discussions, in which Mr. Collenette, Mr. De La
Mare and Mr. Cromartie took part, followed the reading of
each paper, and Colonel de Guérin was warmly thanked for
his very instructive contributions.
MEETINGS. 159
Both of these papers will be published in this year’s
Transactions.
The meeting rose just before 9.30 o’clock.
Annual General Meeting, held Wednesday, December 14th, 1910,
Wilham Carey, Esq., President, in the chavr.
Nineteen members were present. [H:vening very showery
as day had also been.
Mr. W. E. Coles, of Mount Row,: proposed by Mr.
E. A. Luff, and seconded by Mr. B. Rowswell, was elected a
member.
Mr. Rowswell showed a recent publication of the Ray
Society, a work on the British Annelids, containing, amongst
others, some very fine illustrations in colour of worms found in
Channel Island waters.
The annual sectional Reports were read as follows :
Geology.-—Mr. C. G. De La Mare.
Marine Zoology.—Mr. F. L. Tanner.
Ornithology.— Mr. B. T. Rowswell.
Hntomology.—The Rev. F. E. Lowe.
Mr. Collenette spoke about an apparently new disease
which is attacking the roots of an indoor-growing fig tree.
He had been called recently to examine the tree and had sent
a specimen of the diseased roots to the Board of Agriculture
who had replied that they were unable to arrive at any
conclusion as to what insect was doing the mischief. Mr.
Collenette said he had not seen the matured insect, but
had secured a grub.
The Acting Hon. Secretary then read the Report of
the Council, and Mr. C. G. De La Mare, as Acting Hon.
Treasurer, supplied particulars as to the financial status of
the Society. From his remarks it appeared that the year
closed with a balance in hand of £12 2s. 3d. Mr. J.
Linwood Pitts and Mr. Basil T. Rowswell were appointed
auditors.
The President then read a “ Report on the Exploration
of the Paleolithic Cave-dwelling known as La Cotte, St.
Brelade, Jersey.” The Report had been received from
Mr. E. Toulmin Nicolle, Hon. Secretary of the “ Société
_dersiaise,” who in a letter dated October 29th and addressed to
our President said “ The importance of the discovery is such
that it was decided to communicate the result to the principal
learned Societies in England and France and also to yours.
It is the first time that implements of the Mousterian type
160 REPORTS.
have been found in Jersey, indeed in the Channel Islands,
with teeth of the Rhinoceros and Reindeer.” This official
account of the exploration of the La Cotte Cave, undertaken
by the “Société Jersiaise” during the past summer, proved
intensely interesting. In view of the importance of the
discoveries it was decided, at Mr. Collenette’s suggestion, to
postpone the discussion of the Report to another occasion
when more time than was then available might be devoted
to it.
Mr. E. D. Marquand’s Memoir of the late Mr. W. A.
Luff was not read owing to the lateness of the hour.
Two new sectional Secretaries were announced as follows:
The Rev. F. E. Lowe, M.A., succeeds the late Mr. Luff
as Secretary of the Entomological Section, and Mr. B. T.
Rowswell replaces Mr. IX. D. Marquand as Secretary of the
Ornithological Section.
After announcing that Colonel T. W. M. de Guérin was
to succeed him as President, Mr. Carey was very warmly
thanked for his services to the Society. In replying Mr. Carey
said that although now obliged, according to the rules, to
vacate the chair, his interest in the Society’s welfare would
not diminish.
Mr. H. E. Marquand and Mr. C. G. De La Mare were
unanimously elected Secretary and Treasurer respectively. In
connection with the change of Secretary a vote of thanks
was passed to Mr. Rowswell for his services as Acting
Honorary Secretary. 3
The election of the Council for 1911 resulted in the
following ladies and gentlemen being returned :—
Mr. J. Linwood Pitts, M.J.L, F.S.A. (Normandy).
Mr. F. L. Tanner, L.D.S., F.R.C.S.
Miss A. L. Mellish, M.A.
Mr. B. T. Rowswell.
Rev. F. EK. Lowe, M.A.
Miss M. Browne, B.A.
The meeting did not break up until 10.15 o’clock.
Report of the Council, 1910.
In presenting their usual annual Report the Council have
pleasure in reporting another year of successful work, not-
withstanding the fact that the Society has suffered several
severe losses—losses which in a sense have plunged the Society
into deep mourning.
_ Jha
REPORTS. 161
As regards work an amount of systematic observation
and study has been going on in the various sections of
research in which our Society so usefully interests itself. Of
this work, and of the activity of the members by whom it has
been accomplished, the Transactions for 1910, to be published
in due course, will bear ample testimony. Recent important
discoveries in Jersey of a pre-historic nature, the result of
cave excavations undertaken by that very energetic body, “ La
Société Jersiaise,” raises the question whether our own Society
should not turn its attention (with the prospect of as good
results as in the sister island) to the examination of some our
south coast caves. Of the excellent work done in Jersey in this
direction we shall hear something this evening—something that
should stimulate us, as members of an old and flourishing
Natural Science and Research Society, to emulate the doings
of our Jersey friends. Something might perhaps be done in
this direction during the coming year. Money spent on the
excavation of one or two of our island caves most likely to
yield fruitful results would be money very well spent indeed.
Several new names have been added to the roll of mem-
bership this year which now numbers some 90 ladies and
gentlemen. Members, who from lack of time, or some other
cause, are unable to take any very active part in the Society’s
work, can usefully help by showing the annual volume of
Transactions to their friends and inducing them to become
members. The scope of the Society’s work naturally depends
upon its funds ; the bigger the latter the more the work that
can be undertaken.
Attendance at the monthly meetings has been quite up to
the average, and a lively interest has been taken in the papers
read on these occasions.
On Tuesday evening, February 8th, the Seventh Annual
Soirée in aid of the Society’s funds was held in the Guille-
Allés Lecture Hall (kindly lent for the occasion as in former
years) and was well attended by members and the general
public. Particulars of the soirée will be published in the
Transactions, and the Treasurer’s Report will deal with the
financial side of the undertaking. The Council tender their
very hearty thanks to all the ladies and gentlemen who so
materially helped to make the Soirée a success, and in
particular to Mr. F. L. Tanner who, as usual, undertook the
preparation of the programme.
The Council of the Lukis Museum, represented by the
Rev. G. E. Lee and Col. T. W. M. de Guérin, received and
entertained the members of our Society at the Grange on
162 REPORTS.
Thursday evening, February 17th. Notices of this specially
arranged-for visit were sent out to all the members, and a
large “number availed themselves of the opportunity to be
present. Altogether a most enjoyable evening was spent,
thanks to the ‘courtesy of Mr. Lee and Col. de Guérin, who
were untiring in their efforts to point out and describe the
treasures contained in this extremely valuable collection of
mostly local archeological finds.
For convenience Mr. Lee had temporarily withdrawn
from their proper place in the show cases a number of specially
valuable objects, including stone hammers and axes, arrow
heads, &c., and on these Mr. Lee spoke principally. The
richness of the Lukis Museum in these pre-historic imple-
ments, as compared with those to be seen in other well-known
collections in Great Britain and on the Continent, was
frequently commented upon by Mr. Lee.
Col. de Guérin afterwards spoke about and described the
pottery found by the Lukis’ in several of the Dolmens on the
island, and which makes such a_ splendid display in the
Museum.
Captain Francis Du Bois Lukis, who, conditionally,
bequeathed his valuable Museum to the States of Guernsey,
died on December 15th, 1907, aged 81 years. On March
18th, 1908, the States accepted the gift, and on April 29th of
the same year purchased the house in the Grange Road where
for so many years the Museum had been located and looked
after by Capt. Lukis. On Friday afternoon, September 17th,
1909, the Museum was formally thrown open to the public.
Turning now to the losses sustained by our Society this
year, it is with the sincerest regret the Council finds itself
called upon to record the decease of the Hon. Treasurer, Mr.
William Ambridge Luff, F.E.S., which occurred at his
residence, Brock Road, on May 19th, at the comparatively
early age of 59 years. Mr. Luff was one cf the Founders of
our Society. He was present at the meeting held on October
10th, i882, when the Society first saw the light, and he was
then and there made Hon. Treasurer, a post he continued to
hold without break to the day of his death. Science generally,
and Entomology in particular, but most of all this Society has
lost a devoted worker in Mr. Luff. The Society's Vran-
sactions, from the beginning to the present time, are full of
the valuable results of his labours in the field of Entomology,
of which he was the great authority in the Channel Islands.
Deceased was laid to rest in the Foulon Cemetery on May
23rd in the presence of a vast concourse of sorrowing friends.
REPORTS. 163
Mr. Luff has gone from our midst, but his work remains a
lasting monument to his memory. Two Memoirs of deceased
will be published in the 1910 volume of Transactions,
one from the pen of his almost life-long friend, Mr. E. D.
Marquand, A.L.S., the other a reprint of an Apprecia-
tion which appeared in the July number of the Fnto-
mologists’ Record, and bears the initials F. EH. L.
As regards the Entomological Section, of which the late
Mr. Luff was Secretary, the Council have much pleasure in
announcing that the Rev. Frank EK. Lowe, M.A., has very
kindly consented to succeed Mr. Luff in that capacity.
Misfortunes never come singly, we are told, and so it has
been with our Society this year. In the early spring Mr.
George T. Derrick, another of the Founders and our highly
valued Hon. Secretary, was taken seriously ill, and an Acting
Honorary Secretary (Mr. Basil T. Rowswell) was named to
temporarily attend to the duties of the post. In September
our President received a letter from Mr. Derrick tendering
his resignation of the post of Secretary on account of
continued ill-health. In acceding to Mr. Derrick’s request
the Council did so regretfully, and now wish to put on record
their high appreciation of his long and valued services to the
Society since its foundation in 1882, and during the last ten
years especially as its Hon. Secretary. Mr. Derrick was
elected Hon. Secretary on December 19th, 1900, in succession
to Mr. W. Sharp, our first Hon. Secretary, who that evening
was raised to the Presidential chair for the usual two years.
In addition to the foregoing, two valued workers have
left the island—Mr. I. D. Marquand who, with his family,
has gone to reside at Paris, and Mr. Eric W. Sharp, who has
entered upon a course of studies in London. Itnergetic
workers are not easily replaced, and Mr. Sharp’s particular
branch of research, Marine Zoology, has had few devotees in
the past although offering rich rewards to its disciples.
Of Mr. Marquand’s work, not for our Society alone, but
for the island and science generally, his well-known and
popular book, “ Flora of Guernsey and the Lesser Channel
Islands,” published in 1901, is a living witness. As an all-
round naturalist, Mr. Marquand is a worker no Society can
afford to lose, and the Council deeply deplore his departure
from amongst us. Mr. Marquand’s special line of study is
Botany as we all know, but his sincere devotion to Natural
History in all its branches, as revealed by the pages of our
Transactions, as also by his presence at the monthly meetings,
is too well known to need commenting upon here. We feel
164 REPORTS.
sure, however, that absence from the island will not lessen Mr.
Marquand’s deep interest in this Society for which he has
done so much and such good work in the past.
In conclusion the Council desire to again thank the
Board of Management of the Guille-Allés Library for the
use of a room for the monthly meetings, for the loan of the
Lecture Hall for the Soirée, as also for the continued, and
deservedly appreciated, interest taken in the Society’s work.
For the Council,
Bastin T. Rowswk.u,
Acting Hon. Secretary.
December 14th, 1910.
_
Donations to the Society’s Library.
The Council regret having to report that very little use
has been made of the Library this year, to which of course
all the members have free access with privilege of borrowing
the volumes for home reading. The usual exchange of
Transactions has been made with scientific societies in
England, France and America, and the list has been increased
by the addition of those of the Torquay Natural Science
Society, and the Marine Zoology Laboratory at Concar-
neau, a request having been received from both places for
copies of our Transactions in exchange for their own.
The donations and exchanges have resulted in the
following additions to the Library :—
From Col. T. W. M. DE GUERIN :—
Dechelette (Joseph), Manuel d’Archéologie Preéhis-
torique Celtique et Gallo-Romaine. IIe Partie. Archéologie
Celtique ou Protohistorique, avec Appendices. 2 vols., 1910.
From Mr. E. D. MARQUAND, A.L.S. :-—
Proceedings of the Linnean Society, 1905 to: 1909
(Five Nos.)
Journal of the Linnean Society, 1905 to 1909. (Four-
teen Nos.) ;
Bulletins de la Société d’Archéologie d’Avranches,
1907 and 1908. (Four Nos.)
From Dr. ROBERT L. WOOLCOMBE, M.A., of Dublin :—
Contributions to the Natural History of Lambay,
County Dublin. Being the January and February numbers
of the Jrish Naturalist for 1907.
From the Author :—
Haize (Jules). La Tour Solidor. Notice Historique.
Norr.—M. Haize is Secretary of La Société Historique et
Archéologique de l’arrondissement de St. Malo.
REPORTS. 165
From La Société Jersiaise, Jersey :—
Journal de Jean Chevalier. 4me et dSme Fascicules.
Trente-Cinquieme Bulletin Annuel, 1910.
From the Trustees of the British Museum :—
Sharpe (R. Bowdler), LL.D., Hand-list of the Genera
and Species of Birds. Vol. V. 1909.
Guide to the British Vertebrates. 1910.
Guide to the Crustacea, Arachnida, Onychophora and
Myriopoda. 1910.
Memorials of Charles Darwin. Special Guide No. 4.
1910.
From the London County Council :—
Kighth Annual Report of the Horniman Museum and
Library, Forest Hill, London, 8.E. 1909.
From the Torquay Natural History Society, Founded 1844 :—
Journal of the Torquay Natural History Society. Vol. I.
Nos. l and 2. 1909-1910.
From France, etc. :—
Phytogeographical Nomenclature (IIIme Congres In-
ternational de Botanique, Bruxelles, May, 1910). Reports
and Propositions, by Flahault & Schroter.
Travaux Scientifiques du Laboratoire de Zoologie et
de Physiologie Maritimes de Concarneau. Tome I. (2me
Partie), 1909.
Travaux Scientifiques de lUniversité de Rennes.
Tome VI., 1907.
Do. (2me Partie), 1907.
From Portici, Italy :—
Bolletino del Laboratorio di Zoologia Generale e
Agraria della R. Scuola Superiore d’ Agricoltura in Portici.
Wolk V., 1910;
From the United States of America :—
Boston Society of Natural History.— Proceedings.
Wol) XXXIV., Nos. 5 to 8. 1909-1910.
Do.—Allen (Glover M.), Fauna of New England.
II. List of the Aves. 1909.
Cincinnati, Ohio.—Bulletin of the Lloyd Library of
Botany, Pharmacy and Materia Medica. Pharmacy Series,
No. 2, 1910, and Mycological Series, No. 4, 1909.
Philadelphia.— Academy of Natural Sciences, Vol. LXI.,
Rarts;2 and 3, and Vol. IXIl., Parts I and 2. 1909-1910.
Washington.—Library of Congress. Report for year
ending June 30, 1909.
Do.—Smithsonian Institution. Annual Report for
year ending June 30, 1908. 1909.
Do.—Do. Report of the U.S, National Museum for
the year ending June 30, 1909. 1909.
SHEET.
BALANCE
166
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Report of the Entomological Section, 1910.
Owing to the irreparable loss our Society has sustained
by the death of the Veteran Entomologist and Special Secre-
tary, no full report of the Society’s work in this section is
possible.
I have been requested to attempt to supply the deficiency
and have consented to do my best, chiefly because I believe
Mr. Luff would wish it. I am not aware that Mr. Luff has
left notes of any points brought to his notice during the first
half of the year, and I, of course, having no official position
have received no reports. I am only able therefore to place
at the disposal of the Society the slender material provided by
my own experience, and confined to the single branch of my
own pursuit of Entomology, viz., Lepidoptera.
The year 1910 has been one of almost continued cold and
rain, and the insects observed have been few. This does not
necessarily mean that they have been greatly rednced in
number, but that in unfavourable weather they are less active
and consequently less in evidence. And for the same reason
probably the field naturalist has been less energetic and given
himself fewer opportunities of observation.
However, we can add three moths to our local list which
are very desirable additions.
The one of first importance 1s Wola albula. Its discovery
was due to a happy chance. A schoolboy of Marlborough
College, spending his summer holidays in Guernsey, brought
to me a box of very ordinary moths to name for him, but
among the common herd was a good specimen of Nola albula.
Of this genus Ao/u some five species only are recorded for
Iingland ; though for Europe Standinger’s list includes four-
teen or fifteen. Albula is a very rare moth in England, only
seven specimens are known to have been taken. It is, how-
ever, a widely distributed species, and is found not uncom-
monly throughout Northern aud Central Hurope, extending as
far south as Italy and Dalmatia. and eastward to Japan.
The German dealers are therefore able to offer it in their
lists at the low price of 8d. Our Guernsey specimen was
beaten out of the hedge in a lane near Cobo, and alas! ranks
as a “foreigner.” In the same box was a rather wasted
specimen of Pelurga comitata, an insect which has not before
been recorded for Guernsey, though taken by Mr. Luff in
Alderney in 1873. This is a fairly common moth on waste
eround in England. Another interesting capture by the same
boy were several specimens of Agrotis vestigialis, Rott.
( Valligera Hb.) ‘The only previous record of this species in
168 REPORTS.
Guernsey was made by myself in the early eighties, and as I
had never seen it since I had begun to suspect some mistake
—the more that I had not preserved a Guernsey specimen.
All my own come from North Wales.
On September 8th I took flying to light at the Imperial
Hotel, Pleinmmont, a fine male Epineuronia (Heliophobus )
popularis. ‘This handsome moth, though very common in the
south of England, has never been noticed in Guernsey before.
This is the more strange as it is too large and too boisterous
in its behaviour to be easily overlooked. The male is readily
attracted by lght, the female never, but is a very sluggish
insect and can only be found by searching at night with a
lantern the stems of coarse grass on which it rests and on
which the larva feeds.
Frank E. Lowe, Sec. Ent. Sect.
Report of the Geological Section, 1910.
1.—* Hougue du Mottier” Quarry, S. Sampson.
The working of this quarry has exposed a fine section of
a@ vein presenting some peculiarities. This vein is of a
uniform width of about 2 feet, but its course is very sinuous,
which may in great measure be accounted for by faulting and
displacement subsequent to its intrusion. The “ country
rock” is the usual diorite, but the composition of the vein is
variable. In those parts where it seems least altered, it
consists almost entirely of crystallized quartz and felspar, but
elsewhere it passes into ci syenite, while in other parts it has
been altered by the formation of secondary products, such as
chlorite and epidote, and the vein has a very mottled appear-
ance due to the presence of iron in various combinations.
The diorite into which it intrudes is also much altered in
places, resembling serpentine, while on the east side of the
quarry there is a patch where it is distinctly banded, some of
the bands consisting entirely of hornblende in crystals
averaging + of an inch in diameter, while the alternating
bands contain much quartz. This patch of banded rock is
cut through by the vein, so that its banded formation is
evidently anterior.
2.—Rue Piette, Catel.
The bank having been cut back for the purpose of
building a well, shewed superficial deposits ranging from
nothing at the south end to 5 or 6 feet in thickness at the
lower or north end. These deposits consist of the usual
REPORTS. 169
roughly stratified alternations of sand and clay. The under-
eee ; aa
lying rock is decompose! gneiss, with intrusive veins of
granite corresponding to that at Cobo.
C. G. De La Mare, Sec. Geo. Sect.
Report of the Ornithological Section, 1910.
The recent departure from the island of Mr. E. D.
Marquand, A.L.8., has deprived the Ornithological Section of
its valued Secretary, whose annual Report on the bird migra-
tion to and from the island it has been our privilege ‘and
profit to hear read for several years past.
In 1889 (twenty-one years ago) I commenced making a
few notes on some of our summer bird visitors, and having,
with a few additions, continued these observations regularly
since, I offer this as my sole excuse for attempting, however
imperfectly, to keep up the work begun by Mr. Marquand for
our Society in connection with bird migration here. Several
ladies and gentlemen, whose names appear lower down, have
assisted me materially with this Report, and to each and all
of these I am deeply indebted for notes, the more especially
as my own observations are mostly confined to St. Martin’s,
while some of theirs include the district of the Vale at one
end of the island and Torteval at the other. The bigger the
field of observation the better.
In sending me his notes, Mr. J. 8. Hocart, of Les
Mielles, Vale, wrote :—“ To all appearance I believe that
birds are getting each year scarcer at the Vale. The large
area of ground now covered with glass, and the disappear-
ance of ti ees, bushes, &e., which used to afford them shelter
and cover, is probably helping to keep them away. The
great number of air-guns now used by boys is also depriving
us of our songsters ; even the chirping sparrow is far less
abundant than it was at one time.”
Mr. Hocart’s reference to air-guns has struck a sympa-
thetic chord. For the sake of the poor defenceless birds I
heartily wish there was no such thing as air-guns. In many
instances the little bird shot at is not killed outright, only
wounded more or less badly, and left, very often with perhaps
a broken wing or leg, to die a painful, lingering death.
I certainly think something might be done to protect. the
birds from this cruelty, if in no other way by licensing the
owners of air-guns and fixing an age, before attaining which
boys should not be allowed to use them. I wish our legisla-
170 REPORTS.
tors could be induced to move in the matter just for the sake
of our feathered songsters without whose sweet singing the
country-side, even in spring and summer, would be dull indeed.
Ornithological Reports have been published in our
Society’s Transactions since 1903, and as supplementing this
year’s observations, I have added in brackets at the end of
each note the earliest and latest recorded date for that
particular bird with the year and the authority responsible for
the observation.
Chiff Chaff.— Heard several of these early Spring arrivals on March 23rd in
the Fermain Bay valley. They were in song almost as in the height of
the season: it was most delightful to hear them once more. Exactly
when they arrived I cannot say, as this was my first visit to the valley in
search of them. Before the end of the month the birds were quite
plentiful at St. Martin’s. I continued to hear the bird until the early
days of October, my last date being the 8th, when I heard one at Moulin
Huet, below the Courtes Fallaises.
[March 23rd in 1910.—Mr. B. T. Rowswell. |
| October 22nd in 1908.—Mr. E. D. Marquand. |
Wheatear.—Mr. E. D. Marquand and his son saw two Wheatears at Icart
Point, St. Martin’s, on the 28th of March, one day later than last vear.
The first I saw was on April 5th, on the Moulin Huet cliffs. At
VAncresse Mr Hocart did not see any until the 10th of the month, and
the last seen by him in that district was on October 11th. At St.
Martin’s I continued to see Wheatears off and on at Petit Port up to
October 25th.
[March 12th in 1903.—Mr. G. Dalgliesh. ]
[ October 25th in 1910.—Mr. B. T. Rowswell. ]
Wrynececk.—The cry of this always most welcome harbinger of Spring and
of the Cuckoo was first heard on March 29th by the Rev. R. H. Tourtel,
at Torteval, who reports hearing it several times that afternoon. A week
later, on April 5th, the bird was heard by Mr. E. Durman at St.
Saviour’s, and on the 8th I heard the cry myself at the bottom of the
Water Lane, St. Martin’s. At the Vale Mr. Hocart’s notes give
April 11th as the date of arrival in his district. Mr. Hocart says :—
‘‘'The bird was seldom heard, and disappeared unusually early,’’ and he
mentions June 25th as the last occasion on which he heard the bird
calling in his neighbourhood. The Rev. R. H. Tourtel gives July 15th
as his last date. At St. Martin’s I continued noting the sound until
July 18th on which date, while walking along the Moulin Huet cliffs, I
heard the bird for the last time. Two days earlier, and on the same
cliffs, I got almost within touching distance of a Wryneck still in full
song. The strength of the cry at close quarters is almost startling and
the clearness of the note delightful.
[March 29th in 1910.—Rev. R. H. Tourtel. |]
[July 30th in 1908.-Mr. J 8. Hocart.]
Cuckoo.—This, probably the best known of all our feathered visitors, was
heard first on April 21st and again on the 22nd by Miss Boley, in the
Sausmarez Manor grounds at St. Martin’s. On the 25rd the bird was
heard generally all over the island for Rev. Tourtel, at Torteval; Capt.
Lenfestey, at Le Bordage, St. Peter’s-in-the- Wood ; Mr. Robert, at New
Place, Vauvert; Mr. Durman, at St. Saviour’s, and Mr. Hocart, at the
Vale, all report hearing the familiar call, in the districts named, on this
day. It was also recorded in several parts of St. Martin’s, and the
Evening Press stated that it was both seen and heard at Les Varendes at
6am. This well distributed, and I may add thoroughly trustworthy
| a
REPORTS. 7
testimony to the general appearance of the Cuckoo in all parts of
Guernsey on April 23rd, is, | consider, very interesting. With the close
of the month of June, the Cuckoo’s voice practically ceases to be heard
in the land although, as is well known, the bird remains with us for some
weeks longer. Mr. Hocart tells me that June 22nd was the last day on
which he heard the bird at the Vale, and Mr. Tourtel gives June 30th for
himself at Torteval. At St. Martin’s the Vallon trees, below the Courtes
Fallaises, is a favourite haunt of the Cuckoo, and at this spot I have
frequently loitered in the gathering twilight at the end of June and the
beginning of July to listen to the rich full note coming from one of the
tree-tops. On July Ist of this year, for instance, at 8.30 o’clock in the
evening, I was sauntering along the old pathway when a bird started
singing and only stopped after saying ‘‘ cuckoo ’’ 140 times. I heard a
bird there again on July 4th, 5th, 6th and 8th. At 7.45 a.m. on the 9th,
my old friend, | presume, said ‘‘cuckov’”’ 72 times, and at 8 o’clock on
the evening of the same day I heard him for the last time when all he
could manage was a few calls in a very husky voice. The next day,
July 10th, Mr. G. J. Tourtel heard a bird at the same spot and this is
the latest date for hearing the Cuckoo of which I have reliable
information.
[April 13th in 1905.—Mr. E. D. Marquand. |
[July 13th m 1907.—Rev. R. H. Tourtel. |
Swallow.—On April 12th, my brother-in-law, Mr. G. F. Allés, and myself
saw a Swallow skimming over a field near Les Naftiaux, at S. Andrew’s.
I did not chance to see any again until April 22nd, but on the 26th and
29th they were plentiful at Moulin Huet. At L’Ancresse Mr. Hocart
first saw some on April 21st, a date he considers as rather late. As
regards their departure, Mr. Hocart wrote :—‘‘ The bulk of them left the
Vale during some rough cold days at the middle of September, but a few
were still seen daily until October 16th, when I saw the two last.’’ Of
the departure of the main body I have no personal observations to report,
but I noticed while out driving in the country for several hours, both on
October 10th and 11th, that very few Swallows were about. I saw some
in different places on Sunday, the 23rd, at Petit Port on the 25th, at Les
Blanches on the 28th, and a solitary one along the Fort road on the 31st.
This I thought was going to be my latest date for seeing Swallows this
year, but exactly a fortnight later, on November 14th, a couple were
seen flying about at the top of George-road.
[April 6th in 1909.—Mr. EK D. Marquand. ]
[ November 14th in 1910.—Mr. B. T. Rowswell. ]
House Martin.—About this pretty little member of the Swallow tribe I
have been supplied with no notes, so only can give you the result of my
own observations. With many people Swallows proper, House Martins
and Swifts, are all Swallows, and yet each have very distinctive
characteristics. ‘The House Martin, for instance, is smallest of the three,
and has a short blunt tail. Then, in addition, the snow-white patch of
feathers on the back near the tail easily distinguishes it from the other
members of the family. The first I saw this year was a solitary one
flying about over the Moulin Huet cliffs on April 29th, and I did not see
any more until May 9th, when another was observed at the same place,
after which they became normally plentiful for the season. Throughout
October I continued to see House Martins from time to time. On the
23rd for example several were sporting themselves in a gully at Petit
Port, and I saw some again at Les Blanches on the 28th and at Moulin
Huet on the 31st. On November loth I saw one (the last) at the top of
George Road at 10 a.m.
[April 3rd in 1905.—Mr. E. D. Marquand. |
| November 17th in 1908.—Mr. B. T. Rowswell. ]
Swift.—Mr. George J. Tourtel, of St. Martin’s, was the first to observe the
arrival of the ‘‘ Black Swallows”’ this year. On April 29th he saw one
172
REPORTS.
of these interesting birds at Moulin Huet, but I did not see any until
May 9th, when I watched three sporting themselves over the Fort Road.
On Whit-Monday, May 16th, the birds showed decided indications of
becoming more plentiful. On Thursday evening, August 11th, my
brother-in-law and myself witnessed a great assembly of Swifts over the
cliffs at Les Fontenelles, Forest. We had been spending a lazy afternoon
amongst the gorse, smoking and reading, when about 6 o’clock the birds
began to attract our attention. At first the party was comparatively
small in number, perhaps fifty, then grew steadily until we estimated
the number at over 200. The birds were circling about at all elevations—
many so low that the peculiar click of the wings and the rush of the
birds through the air were distinctly heard. Once the whole flock
without exception rose suddenly to such a great height that had we not
known they were Swifts, it would have been impossible to identify them.
When we left the spot at 7 o’clock, the birds had again descended to
lower levels and were flying about in all directions in as large numbers as
ever. We noticed, too, that the birds were perfectly silent, never once
uttering the harsh scream for which Swifts are noted when chasing one
another on warm summer days as, for instance, the little Town Church
band may often be heard doing during the height of the season. It was
certainly a most interesting sight, unlike anything we had ever seen
before. Swifts are the last «f the Hirundines to reach our shores as
they are the first to leave, departing in bulk towards the end of August.
Stragglers, however, may still be seen in the early days of September.
Durmg the week ending September 2nd this year, I saw a few almost
daily and on the morning of the 4th a couple were flying high over
St. Martin’s church. On the 9th I noted the last, a solitary one, at
the Courtes Fallaises, St. Martin’s.
[April 24th in 1909.—Mr. E. D. Marquand. |
[September 26th in 1907.—Mr. KE. D. Marquand. ]
Cornerake.—This interesting Summer migrant, the scarcity of which in
Nig
Jay.—In last year’s Ornithological Report, Mr. Marquand was able to put -
recent years has been commented upon by Mr. Marquand on several
occasions, appears to have been rather more abundant this season,
although the whole of the observations recorded in connection with it
are embraced within the small compass of eleven days. The bird was
first heard by my brother-in-law (Mr. Allés) and myself on Whit-
Monday afternoon, May 16th, at Les Jaonnets, St. Saviour’s. On the
evening of the same day my friend, Mr. KE. Rammell, heard Corncrakes
at three different spots near St. George, Catel. On Saturday evening,
May 21st, whilst observing Halley’s Comet from Les Bemonts, St.
Andrew’s, In company with Mr. Rammell, the pleasant if somewhat
unmusical sound floated up to us from the lowlands in the distance.
This was my last date for hearing the bird, but the Rev. R. H. Tourtel
reports that it was heard again at St. George on the 26th. Mr. J. S.
Hocart did not once hear the bird this summer.
[May 5th in 1907. ]
[No records for being last heard. |
htjar.— Mr. E. Rammell reports seeing one of these birds on the evening
of May 25th near Les Bemonts, St. Andrew’s. The Nightjar although,
I believe, a regular summer visitant, is not by any means a familiar or
well known bird here, possibly owing to its nocturnal habits.
on record that in the Autumn of 1899 or 1900, Mr. G. E. Kinnersly had
seen a couple of Jays in the shrubbery at Le Vallon, St. Martin’s. This
year Mr. Kinnersly reports seeing two of these pretty birds on
November 21st at Le Moulin de Haut, Catel.
Blaeckstart.—On October 23rd, between Moulin Huet and Petit Port, I
chanced upon one of these, when on the wing, remarkably pretty birds.
The red patch at the base of the back was strikingly brilliant.. On
ad bei
REPORTS. 733
November 3rd, 1908, I saw a Blackstart at practically the same spot, and
Mr. E. D. Marquand also reported seeing several about the same time on
the cliffs between Icart and Petit Bot as well as one on the heights above
Petit Port.
B. T. RowsweE.u, Sec. Orni. Sect.
Report of Section for Marine Zoology.
There is unfortunately very little to report this year on
this branch of our Society’s work.
The only serious worker left to us—Mr. Eric Sharp—
was only here for part of the year, and now he too has gone.
There are three additions to our list to record :—
(a) A new sponge—Leuconia fistulosa—at Cobo by
Mr. Eric Sharp.
(0) A new anemone, the Glaucous Warty Anemone-—
Bunodes Hallia—in Grande Gréve Bay, Sark, by
myself. The specimen is at present living in my
aquarium.
(c) Also a distinct variety of the Globe-horn Anemone,
red in colour—Corynactis corallina. Although
this variety has been known to me for many years
as occurring in large numbers in the Gouliot Caves,
Sark, it has not hitherto appeared on our list.
And yet the year has not been entirely devoid of interest.
Thanks to Miss Mellish and Miss Browne a number of the
pupils at the Ladies’ College have commenced to take an
active interest in this subject and have established a marine
aquarium. I trust that some of them, at least, may in time
become workers for our Society. Towards the end of October
I conducted a number of these pupils, accompanied by Miss
Fraser and Miss Browne, to Sark with the object of exploring
the Gouliot Caves. Unfortunately the day turned out very
stormy, very wet and very cold, and great masses of seaweed,
carried in by the waves, partially choked the inner caves.
Though we were prevented from seeing and obtaining speci-
mens of many things we had hoped to, the visit was of the
ereatest interest to me.
I have visited these caves nearly every year for seven-
teen years, but have never been into them so late in the year
before, and the change since September, when I was last there,
was most remarkable. The walls of one of the inner caves
during the summer are closely studded with tens of thousands
of Corynactis—the little Globe-horn Anemone. On the right
side they are almost exclusively of a red variety— Corynactis
C
174 REPORTS.
corallina, on the left side the commoner yellowish-green one—
Corynactis viridis. Now all were gone. <A similar change
was noticeable in some of the other caves. In the so-called
Grass Cave, the walls of which in summer are so closely
covered with Hydroid Zoophytes as to present the appearance
of being overgrown with grass ; they are commonly mistaken
by the ordinary visitor for a variety of seaweed. The walls
were now getting bare, only sparsely distributed masses
remaining. In another cave, remarkable in summer for the
large numbers of the beautiful little Orange-diseed Anemone
—Sagurtia venusta—which adorn its walls, one now had to
hunt to find any considerable number.
Now the interesting points arise: (1) What becomes of
these animals in winter? Do they leave the walls of the
cave and retreat into deeper water for warmth? If so, how
do they get back again? (2) How can we account for the
fact that on the return of warmer weather not only do they
return to the same cave as formerly, but the different kinds
appear on the same walls as in the previous summer? Why
is one wall almost exclusively Corynactis corallina, another
Corynactis viridis, and in the Grass Cave zoophytes? Also
how is it that some forms found almost exclusively in these
caves do not make their appearance in other sheltered spots in
the neighbourhood ? If they do not retreat into deeper water
on the approach of winter, what becomes of them ?
I think that this opens up a most interesting question,
and one on which [ can find no information in the writings of
the various authorities on Marine Zoology. Unfortunately
most of these writers do not live permanently at the sea-side,
but go down there in the summer for a longer or shorter time ;
consequently they always see things under very similar con-
ditions. This shows that useful work can be done even in the
winter by studying the different changes produced by varying
conditions. What place could be more advantageously situated
than Guernsey and the neighbouring islands for studying such
changes! What we particularly want are a few intelligent
and systematic workers who will not merely work for a few
months in the summer when the weather is inviting, but who
will keep up their observations regularly during the winter
also.
Mr. Eric Sharp reports as follows :—
There is scarcely anything to report. about Marine Zoo-
logy for the past year. |
Miss Mellish, the Principal of the Ladies’ College, did
me the honour of asking me to take the College Nature Study
REPORTS. 175
Class to the shore. Two outings were undertaken, the first to
Cobo and the second to V’Islet. On both occasions a large
and enthusiastic gathering spent several hours among the
wonders of nature. During the visit to Cobo a new sponge
was found, Leuconia fistulosa. It takes the form of an ellipti-
cal knob of twisted white thread standing on a short stalk.
The whole is less than $-inch in height.
Nothing new was found on the second excursion, but
many very interesting creatures were seen. The masses of
the small Red Sea-squirt (Styelopsis grosularia) which cover
the rocks at l’Islet were greatly admired, as well as the beauti-
ful colours and varied forms of Botryllus schlosseris, B.
violacea, B. smaragdus and Botrylloides rubrum. The small
caves which abound on this piece of shore were a source
of endless enjoyment to those members who could squeeze
into the openings. In one cave species of nearly every
class found on our shores are to be seen, a fine colony of
Sagartia venusta studs a little pool at the base, the beautiful
discs of Corynactis viridis peep out from among the masses
of pendant Zoophytes and polyzoa on the roof. On a buttress
at one side is a huge mass of the grey sponge Pachymatisma
Johnstoni, while bordering the sea-ward entrance are to be
found sponges Leuconia nivea, Dictyocylindrus ramosus, and
a curious form like a small mass of purple crotchet cotton,
the name of which I cannot find out.
But among all these wonders the two objects which
attracted the most attention were the Octopus (O. vulgaris)
and the large spiny star-fish (Uraster glacialis). Another
rather interesting capture was a huge specimen of the Spider
Crab (Mata squinado), which on being presented to a fisher-
man called forth the remark from him “that this species
was quite rare at that spot, especially one of the size caught.”
A specimen of Conger Eel (C. vulgaris), about 3 inches
in diameter, was seen poking its head out of a crack in
the rock. On coming back from the shore a tide-washed
specimen of Arctus ursus (= Scyllarus arctus) was found
which although somewhat worn was sufficiently perfect to
show the curious flattened leaf-like processes on the head.
On the whole the excursions were a great success and
many of the ladies took voluminous notes. I hope this branch
of nature study will be prosecuted with much zeal and success
at the Ladies’ College.
A few notes as to the best hunting grounds in Guernsey
may not be out of place. For all-round work, Bordeaux,
not the harbour, but a cove to the north thereof, although
176 REPORTS.
that has deteriorated even within the last seven or eight
years. For rock-loving animals (Sponges and Ascidians es-
pecially) there is no place like PIslet, or rather the seaward
rocks west of Grand Havre. The long ridge of rocks ending
in a beacon at Cobo is a splendid hunting ground, whilst
Lihou Causeway will afford many hours’ work to those who
enjoy wading.
Minor hunting grounds are Pezeries Point, Petit Port,
Terres Point, Castle Cornet and Belle Grave Bay. For
sand burrowers, Havelet Bay is by far the best, rare
anemones like Peuchia, Cerianthus and Halcampus occurring
there, while the crustaceans Corystes and Portunus marmoreas
are also found.
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Fig. 3.—St. Sernin, Aveyron, France. Fig. 4.—Les Maurels, Tarn, France.
* I am indebted to the kindness of Dr. P. Raymond, editor of La Revue
Préhistorique, Paris, for the plates of the illustrations of this paper.
OUR STATUE-MENHIRS AND THOSE OF
FRANCE AND ITALY.
BY LIEUT.-COL. T. W: M. DE GUERIN.
0
In our two statue-menhirs, we have most interesting specimens
of prehistoric or protohistoric sculpture, unique, so far as our
immediate neighbourhood is concerned. Recently the origin
and probable date of similar statues and sculptured figures i in
the valleys of the Seine and Oise, in the Marne, and also in
the south-eastern departments of France, have much occupied
the attention of French savants. M. Salomon Reinach,
Curator of the famous Museum of Saint Germain, in his
work on “La Sculpture en Kurope avant les influences Greco-
Romaines” as well as M. J. Déchelette, Curator of the
Museum of Roane, in his recently published ‘“ Manuel
WV Archéologie Préhistorique,” have written on them at con-
siderable length. It may be of interest to us to examine
their conclusions and thus gain a better knowledge of our
own statues.
First let us glance at the statue-menhir now standing in
the Catel churchyard (Fig. 1.), the rudest and without doubt
the oldest in our island. It was discovered during the
restoration of the church, in 1878, buried, according to
Sir Edgar MacCulloch, about a foot beneath the pavement
at the entrance to the chancel. It lay on its side midway
between the two walls, with its foot pointing towards the
east. Its total length was 6 ft. 6 in. and width at the
shoulders 1 ft. 3 in. It was removed from the church and
erected in its present position in the churchyard under the
trees to the north of the porch. It resembles a natural
boulder very rudely sculptured by man. The back is plain
and slightly rounded, and on the front side are sculptured
two projecting female breasts, and just above them a slightly
raised semi-circular object, without doubt, the typical neck-
lace found, as we shall see, on most figures of this type.
From the shoulders upwards the stone ovadually tapers to
the top of the head round which is a small rounded fillet or
diadem. No features of the face are at present discernable,
but what should be the face and the right breast bear
[1910.]
178 STATUE-MENHIRS.
unmistakable signs of having been defaced by a hammer
or chisel.
We will now compare this statue with the early anthro-
pomorphic sculptures in France, found on the props of the
‘“allées couvertes”” or dolmens with galleries, of the valleys
of the Seine and Oise. That of the dolmen of Aveny,
canton d’Ecos, arrondissement des Andelys, Eure, is typical
of the whole series. It represents a necklace above two
female breasts, but no attempt has been made to represent
the face. Similar sculptures have been found on the two
props of the dolmen of Belle Haye, commune de Boury,
Oise. Another on a prop of the dolmen of Le Trou aux
Anglais, commune d’Aubergenville, Seine et Oise, shows
an advance. Here we see the same typical necklace above
the two female breasts, but above it is the addition of a
circular head with indications of the brows, eyes and nose.
This type thus approaches in details our statue-menhir of
the Catel, and also is we might say the prototype of the
famous sculptured figures of “the grottoes of the Marne.
These grottoes were explored by the Baron de Baye, about
the year 1874, and consist in all of 120, artificially excavated
in the sides of the hills of the valley of the Petit Morin,
near Epernay. They all belong to the Neolithic period,
no trace of metal having been found in any of them, but
it is probable that they date at the very end of that period,
at the verge of the Bronze Age. In every case these
grottoes had been used as places of burial. In seven of the
most important rude sculptures of human figures and hafted
stone axes were found carved upon the walls. Here again,
in nearly every instance, we find the same type of female
figure, the face being rudely indicated by the brows, eyes
and nose only, the neck encircled by a necklace of one or
more strings of beads, beneath which appear two projecting
female breasts, but no attempt made to represent the body
or limbs, or (except in one solitary instance) the mouth,
These figures were invariably carved on the walls of the
left hand side of the passage or of the anti-chamber leading
to the tomb proper, never within the tomb itself. In the
grotto of Courjeonnet, there was one rude female figure
sculptured on the side of the trench leading to the entance
of the grotto, and another in the etulolle leading to the
tomb, the latter figure being the only one on ohh the
mouth was indicated. It has also a necklace of several
strings of beads round its neck but as no breasts are repre-
sented its sex is doubtful. On each side of the doorway
STA TUE-MENHIRS. 179
leading into the tomb chamber of this same grotto, and again
within the tomb, are carved hafted stone axes with their
cutting edge towards the entrance. Another implement of
doubtful character, possibly intended to represent a club,
is also sculptured on the wall of the tomb. In the grotto
of Croiznard a human figure with a hafted stone axe is
sculptured on the left hand side of the entrance of the
tomb. In the same grotto is also the most perfect female
figure of the series, the centre bead of its necklace bearing
signs of having been coloured yellow, probably to represent
amber. The presence of these figures in the passages and
anti-chambers leading to these tombs seems to show that
they represent the ouardian deities of the dead.
At Collorgues, near Uzez (département du Gard),
another type of these figures, sculptured on flat slabs of
stone, has been discovered in a dolmen built up with blocks
of stone. The first sculptured slab was found resting on
the top of the large stone covering the chamber. It is
very rudely carved “with a female figure much resembling
those of the grottoes of the Marne, but in this case an
attempt has been made to represent the two arms, and
below them is an object supposed to represent an axe. A
second figure sculptured on a slab of stone in the passage
leading to the chamber of this dolmen is of the same type
but perhaps rather less rudely worked. A quantity of
worked flints and other Neolithic implements and fragments
of vottery were found dispersed on the surface of the ground
round the tumulus. Other very similarly carved stones have
been found at Castelnau-Valence, Foissac and Bragassargues,
all in the same neighbourhood.
The next group consists of the statue-menhirs of the
Aveyron, Tarn and Herault, of which no less than 21 have
been discovered by ! Abbé Hermet since 1892. Twelve were
found in the Aveyron, six in the Tarn and three in Herault.
In 1909 another was discovered in the Bouches du Rhone.
The most perfect example of these statues is that of
Saint Sernin, Aveyron (Fig. 3). Its face resembles much in
character those of the figures of the Marne and Gard, and
round its neck is a necklace of several strings and an object,
not yet identified, which does not appear on any of the other
statues of the type. The lower part of the face is ornamented
with two groups of four straight lines, thought by Déchelette
to represent tattoo marks. The back of the statue is not
plain, like ours of the Catel, but 1s grooved in folds to repre-
sent a cloak or mantle. It has been questioned whether these
180 STATUE-MENHIRS.
marks really represent a cloak, as the figure seems nearly
naked, not only the breasts and legs in front being visible,
but also the shoulders at the back.
The statue-menhir of Les Maurels, Tarn, (Fig 4.) the
two of Pousthomy, Aveyron, and that of Puech-Real, Tarn,
show no breasts, so it is difficult to determine their sex. Their
details also differ from those of Saint Sernin. On all of them
there seems to be a sort of band or baldrick across the
breast, and on it a circular ring to which appears to be
suspended an elongated triangular object. Déchelette queries
whether the latter may be intended to represent a poniard
or the other end of the band. A poniard in much the
same position appears on several similar statues in Italy.
In this case these statues probably represent male divinities.
On the breasts of each of them is carved a small object
to which various interpretations have been given. It has
been supposed by some to represent a small bow and arrow
and by others to be a metal fibula. Reinach who takes the
latter view also considers the curious marks at the back of the
statue of Les Maurels to represent part of a metal tore.
Whether this supposition is correct is questioned by Déche-
lette, who is inclined to think it improbable that any of these
objects represent metal, but at the same time he acknowledges
that our present knowledge of these statues is too limited to be
positive one way or the other.
It is not necessary to go into details on the other statue-
menhirs, of which a list is given by Déchelette, but it may be
as well to mention in passing that lines of tattooing marks
similar to those on the face of the statue of Saint Sernin are
also to be seen on the faces of those of La Bessicre, Tarn and
Bragassargues.
We have noticed that the sculptures of the valleys
of the Seine and Oise, and those of the grottoes of the Marne
and of the tumulus of the Gard were all associated with places
of burial, presumably as guardians of the dead. It has been
conjectured that the statue-menhirs of the Aveyron and
adjoining Departments were erected with a similar object.
The discovery of the statue-menhir of Le Mas d’Azais above
a stone kist containing human remains tends to confirm this
theory.
Equally rude statue-menhirs have been discovered in
North Italy. Of these, nine were found in 1905 at Bacciari,
in the commune of Fivizzano, near Spezia, buried in a mound
of earth. They were, with the exception of one, found placed
in an alignment touching each other. No traces of bones or
STATU E-MENHIRS. 181
pottery were found near them, but beneath them the black
greasy nature of the soil seemed to indicate an ancient place
ef interment. These figures are extremely rude and undoubt-
edly intended to represent both sexes (Figs.5 and 6). Though
Figs. 5 and 6.—Fivizzanno, Italy.
differing slightly in details still their affinity to those of
Southern France is easily recognised. The absence of the
mouth, the constant representation of the face in a symbolic
T form, and the appearance of tattooing on the face of one of
the figures all point to a common ancestry. The male statues
each bear a poniard resembling those of the early Bronze Age.
Five other similar statues, rather less rudely sculptured,
have been discovered in the same commune of Fivizzano.
They are undoubtedly of a later date as one of them bears an
Etruscan inscription, not necessarily however of the same age
as the figure (Fig. 7), and another is sculptured with a
warrior armed with the typical sword and axe of the Lron
Age (Fig. 8).
We will now turn to our second Guernsey statue-menhir,
that of St. Martin’s (Fig. 2), which I purposely leave to the
last, as I think it will be agreed, on comparing it with those of
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France, that it is undoubtedly the latest of the series. It
182 STATUE-MENHIRS.
exhibits considerable skill in working such a hard material as
our granite. Still in form and in details it shows a con-
tinuation of the same traditional type. We find the same
projecting breasts and necklace as in all the other female
statues of the series. But there is an advance shown in the
modelling of the face, and an attempt has been made to
represent the neck by making the chin project, and though the
features of the face are still very rude, greater care has been
Figs. 7 and 8.—Fivizzanno, Italy.
taken in delineating them. The personal ornaments are
also more carefully carved. These consist of a row of small
circular discs round the forehead and extending once down
both sides of the face, but now only visible on the left side.
Round the neck is a semi-circle of ray-like projections. Sir
Kdgar MacCulloch and the Rev. W. C. Lukis thought they
represented the folds of a hood, but this supposition is rather
improbable and [ am inclined to think they represent the
typical necklace found on all of the female type of these
statues. Possibly they are intended to represent a necklace
or tore of bronze plates or pendeloques. M. G. de Mortillet
whe wrote an article on this statue in L’ Homme Preéhistorique
for June, 1910, thought he could distinguish signs of a band
STA TUE-MENHIRS. 183
round its body and also traces of legs below it, similar to
those represented on the statue-menhirs of Southern France.
On a recent examination of it I came to the conclusion that
while I could not distinguish any trace of legs, there are
undoubtedly on the back and right side of the statue, traces
of a band. At about a foot to fifteen inches above the ground
are two horizontal lines about an inch and a half apart, the
space between them being slightly rounded. The front of the
statue is so weather-worn that it is most difficult to trace the
continuation of the band, but in line with it there seems to be
a slightly raised mark across the stone. The presence of this
band shows the great affinity in details of our St. Martin’s
statue with those of Southern France. There are also some
curious indefinite marks carved near the left shoulder below
the necklace, but it is impossible to make out their meaning.
On the origin of these statues and the cult they symbolize
there is a difference of opinion. Reinach points to a local deri-
vation and traces their development from the rude sculptures of
a necklace and two female breasts, of the dolmens of the
valleys of the Seine and Oise, through the more advanced
figures of the grottoes of the Marne and the tumulus of
Collorgues , Gard, down to the more perfect statue-menhirs of
the Aveyron and adjoining departments. He will have none
of “le mirage oriental’ which looks to the Eastern basin of
the Mediterranean as the home of the prototype. Déchelette
on the other hand accuses Reinach of wishing to trace the
whole of the early Eastern civilization to Western sources.
He states that in spite of variations of form, variations due to
local influences, all these anthropomorphic sculptures are
closely related to each other, and may be traced back to the
same /Kgean prototype; that their dispersion can be traced
from Asia Minor, through Spain, as far as the British Isles.
But in the dispersion of this divinity in Gaul there is one
unexplained fact to be noticed ; it has never been discovered
in Brittany, so rich in other megalithic sculptures. He
questions whether the anti-anthropomorphic influences, which
were so strong at a later date, in the time of the Druids, were
not already existent in that province. This is a point waiting
further elucidation, as in other respects the sculptures of
Armorica in Neolithic times are said to present many signs of
southern influences. Another fact to be noticed is that the
cult of this idol does not seem to have been general in Gaul,
but confined to certain isolated centres.
The presence of this idol in the galleries of the dolmens
of the valleys of the Seime and Oise, at the entrance of the
184 STATUE-MENHIRS.
tomb-chamber in the grottoes of the Marne and in the tumulus
of the dolmen of Collorgues, Gard, would seem to identify it
as the guardian goddess of the dead. Broca would see in it
the prototype of the mother goddesses of the ancient world.
In tracing the probable eastern origin of this idol,
Déchelette compares it with the numerous small statuettes,
chiefly of female divinities, found by Dr. Evans and other
explorers in tombs of the early Minoan period in Crete,
as well as with the idols sculptured on small tablets of marble
found by Dr. Schliemann in the Il City (the burnt city) of
Hissarlik dating from the Ist Bronze Age, B.C. 3000 to 2500.
Mr. A. J. B. Wace and Mr. M. S. T. Thompson have also
recently found in a Neolithic Station, at Tsangh, in Thessaly,
20 to 30 terra-cotta statuettes of male and female figures,
showing that this cult was in existence even at this early
period in the Kast. In South-East Spain and in Portugal,
MM. lL. & H. Siret and others have discovered in graves and
stations of the late Neolithic period, and also in those of the
neolithic, or Copper Age, numerous idols representing the
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Fig. 9.—Idanha a Nova, Portugal. Fig. 10.—Collection Rotondo, Madrid.
human figure in a highly symbolised form, identical in shape
to those found by Evans and Schliemann in Crete, Hissarlik
STATUE-MENHIRS. 185
and other places in the /Egean. Fig. 9 gives an illustration
of one of these idols found at Idanha a Nova, Portugal. It is
engraved on a slab of schist and is almost identical with
one, also illustrated by Siret, found in Cyprus.
Fig. 10 represents another found in Spain, now in the
Collection Rotondo, Madrid. In details the resemblance
of these figures to the statue-menhirs of Southern France is
striking. They show the same symbolic treatment of the
human features already noticed. The absence of the mouth,
and the presence of straight limes of tattoo marks on the
lower part of the face, similar to those on the statue of
St. Sernin and others in South-Eastern France and North
Italy, show an affinity of idea which can only be attributed
to an origin from a common prototype.
Recent discoveries have brought to hght proof of the
ereat influence of the higher A¢gean civilisation on that of
Western Europe at the end of the Neolithic period and during
the early Bronze Age. Traces of this influence are especially
discernable in Spain where numerous objects, beads of callais,
pottery, objects carved in ivory, and the small idols above-
mentioned, have been discovered in graves of the period
closely resembling those of the pre-Mycenean period in the
Atigean and at Hissarlik, all pointing to a maritime connection
with the East. From Spain and the Mediterranean coast
these influences spread northward through Gaul to the
British Isles and Northern Europe along, what is thought. to
be, the oldest route of intercourse between Kast and West.
Proof of this intercourse between East and West is also
to be found in the distribution over wide areas of certain types
of vases and other objects of undoubtedly eastern origin.
The caliciform vase, for instance, is found distributed from
the basin of the Mediterranean, Sicily, Sardinia, Spain, Por-
tugal, and Southern France, to Brittany, the Channel Islands,
Iingland and Germany. In the Mediterranean basin, Spain,
Portugal and the French departments bordering the northern
slopes of the Pyrenees, this form of vase is invariably found
associated with gold, or small copper ornaments, or poniards
of the Eneolithic or Copper Age. To the north of this line
it is, with rare exception, found in dolmens associated with
stone implements with no trace of metal, showing that while
Spain and Southern Europe had reached the first age of metal
at the time of their distribution, Brittany and Western France
were still in the Neolithic period. The similarity in form and
decoration of this particular vase, wherever it is found, points
to its origin from a common type. It does not necessarily
186 STATUE-MENHIRS.
mean, as some authorities would have us believe, that the
vases we find were themselves carried immense distances for
the purpose of barter, but rather that individual specimens
spread along the trade routes from the Mediterranean to the
Baltic, and from Spain to the British Isles, and were copied
by local potters. This form of vase is but one of many
objects that can be traced to an LKastern prototype. <A
curious type of vase with one handle and a slanting lip found
by Schliemann at Hissarik has also been discovered at
Phestos, Crete, and in Sardinia. Another very distinctive
form with a stem, of rather later date, has been found at
Abydos, Egypt, at Knossos, Crete, at Ei Algar in the pro-
vince of Almeria, Spain, and in Bohemia, but nowhere else in
Kurope. It would take too long to enumerate all the various
forms of pottery or of typical patterns of weapons and orna-
ments which can be traced to a similar origin; it is. only
necessary to mention the two and four-handled vases of the
early Bronze Age, also found distributed over the Mediter-
ranean basin and all over Western Hurope, and the curious
spiral decorations, and that of two eyes, found on pottery at
Hissarlik in the ruins of the IL city, in Spain, France,
Iingland, and even as far north as Scandinavia.
It is most difficult to explain the reason why we should
find these statue-menhirs in Guernsey when none are to be
found in Brittany, as in other respects, in the similarity of the
forms of our dolmens, in the forms and patterns of the pottery
found in them, and also in the funeral customs of our primitive
inhabitants, we have, we may say, proof of the affinity of our
culture in Neolithic times with that of Brittany. Further, in
the distinctly Breton type of the bronze implements found in
our islands, we have also proof of the continuation of this
intercourse in the succeeding Bronze Age.
The spread of the cult of this divinity from Spain and
the French Mediterranean littoral through Herault, Gard,
Aveyron and Tarn on to the valleys of the Marne and the Seine
and Oise may be accounted for as they lie on the trade route
with the North. Its presence in our island is more difficult to
explain. Déchelette maintains that a maritime trade already
existed in late Neolithic times between Spain and the British
Isles, and that proof of the extension of this trade in the early
Bronze Age may be gathered from the fact that more
“cachettes de fondeurs”’ containing the earliest form of
bronze axe have been found on the western coasts of France,
than in any other part of that country. This being correct
then this idol may have reached us through this channel. Or,
STATUE-MENHIRS. 187
on the other hand, it may have come to us through intercourse
with the valley of the Seine.
It is difficult to determine the date of our statue-menhirs.
All we can say is, that that of the Catel resembles in type
most nearly the sculptures of the grottoes of the Marne and
of the tumulus of Collorgues, Gard, and it may presumably
have been erected about the same period. As these sculp-
tures of the Marne and Gard are assigned by Déchelette and
other French savants to the late Neolithic period, namely,
sometime before B.C. 2500, we may not be very far wrong
in presuming that ours of the CAtel may possibly be of about
that date. On this point, however, it is necessary to state
that all these dates are only approximate, and further, it is
quite possible that this cult may have only reached our remote
island long after it was first established on the mainland.
Whether the kindred statue-menhirs of the Aveyron, Tarn
and Herault are of the same period or of the early Bronze
Age (te. B.C. 2500 to 1900) is at present undetermined.
Reinach assigns them to the latter, while on the other
hand Dechelette inclines to an earlier date. One point is
however certain, that is, the cult of which they were the
symbol was evidently of comparatively short duration in
Gaul, not a trace of it is to be found in the later Bronze
Age, or in the Hallstatt, or the La Tene periods of the Lron
Age. It vanishes from sight and is replaced by the symbols
of the religious beliefs of the Gauls known to us more fully
through Latin writers. The only places where this cult seems
to have lingered on were among the Ligurians in North Italy,
where it seems to have lasted down to the early Iron Age,
and possibly in our own island, for it is impossible to suppose
other than a much later date than that of the Catel for our
other statue-menhir of St. Martin’s. Probably an interval
of many centuries separated them. The skill necessary to
sculpture hard granite, even in the comparatively rude manner
in which it is carved, could only have developed slowly in
such a remote spot as our island. It would have required
better tools and greater knowledge than was possessed by
the makers of the rude statue-menhirs of South-Eastern
France. The links in the chain are missing, as we possess no
Gaulish sculptures by which to trace its development. Still
though we may consider the St. Martin’s statue the latest
representative of these figures, its affinity to the statue-menhirs
of South-Eastern France is indisputable as it shows all the
characteristic details of the earlier type.
RAMBLES IN SARK
IN SEARCH OF WILD FLOWERS.
BY E. D. MARQUAND, A.L.S.
7)
No observant visitor to the Channel Islands can fail to have
noticed the wonderful profusion of wild flowers and. ferns to
be met with everywhere, and their remarkable variety and
luxuriance. Wherever there is room for them to grow, there
they are. Even in the little island of Sark, three miles long
and a mile wide, the native flora is an exceedingly rich one ;
and probably it will come as a surprise to most people to learn
that between 400 and 500 different kinds of Flowering Plants
are to be found there growing wild. Some of them, it is true,
are very small and inconspicuous, so that they readily escape
notice unless specially searched for ; and some others can only
be distinguished by persons who make a particular study of
these things. But the vast bulk of the wild flowers of Sark
are sufficiently noticeable to attract the attention of even a
careless observer; while they cannot but interest the true
lover of nature. And both will be all the better able to
appreciate and enjoy the beauty of this glorious scenery, if
they know something, however little it may be, concerning the
plants which form one of its predominant features.
Now although every flower is exquisitely beautiful when
it is examined by itself and studied in detail, there are some
flowers which give a character to the landscape by their
growth in large masses. One of the most striking of these is
Gorse, or Furze, which sets the cliffs aglow in Spring with its
golden blossoms, and recalls the feelings of Linnzus, the
ereat Swedish botanist, who at the first view of it in England,
fell on his knees and thanked God for a sight so glorious.
But for a mass of pure unmixed gold, nothing can surpass the
ftowers of the Ragwort, as seen in great patches here upon
the waste land near the sea. Then there is the sheen of silver
in the bloom of the Blackthorn, which clothes itself in
glistening white while its leaves are yet only in bud. Anda
few weeks later, in the early summertime, when “the earth
has grown an emerald and heaven a sapphire now,” a fine
expanse of Oxeyes, or Moon Daisies, gleams here and there
among the bracken, like a sheet of snow. As summer wanes
[1910.]
RAMBLES IN SARK. 189
the hillsides all along the coast may be literally described as
“ oleaming in purple and gold,” by the intermingling of late
flowering Gorse with long stretches of blossoming Heath and
Heather.
These two names, by the way, Heath and Heather, are
often confused, or employed as if they were synonymous ;
but the two plants are distinct enough. The former bears
bright purple bell-like flowers, and narrow spreading leaves ;
whereas Heather has much smaller, lighter-coloured flowers,
and minute leaves pressed close to the stem. Both of them
frequently grow together. Curiously enough, the pretty
cross-leaved Heath, sometimes known as Bell Heather, which
is so plentiful in the south of England, does not grow in Sark,
or in fact anywhere in the Channel Islands, except in one
part of Jersey.
Now, suppose we take a walk or two in this charming
island, the “ gem of the Channel Islands” as the guide-books
call it, and note a few of the wild flowers we happen to meet
with on the way—some common, some rare, but without
particularly specifying the exact localities in which they grow,
because that would take away half the pleasure. ‘To walk up
to a certain place, and see a rare plant which you were told
grew there, is a very tame sort of experience, compared with
the delight of discovering the same plant by yourself quite
unexpectedly, because there is the added pleasure of wondering
whether anybody else in the world knows that it grows in that
spot.
As Sark is justly renowned for its magnificent coast
scenery, let our first ramble be along the cliffs, where there
are large stretches of gorse, heath and bracken interspersed
with rugged grey crags and lichen-covered rocks. The
winding cliff path leads through tangled masses of bramble,
honeysuckle, and wild rose, which rise in little hillocks among
the tall fern, and in some places overhang a yawning chasm
where youcan almost drop a stone into the sea 200 feet below.
And surely no honeysuckle was ever more deliciously fragrant,
and no blackberries more sweet and luscious than those to be
found on these rocky slopes.
At the foot of that boulder yonder, an old weather-beaten
Hawthorn bush, gnarled and knotted with age, and bearded
with grey lichen growth, rises up amidst a miniature forest of
Fetid Iris and Butcher’s Broom, both of them striking plants
in their way, especially in autumn, when their fruit is ripe.
The Iris may be known at once, even if not in flower, by the
disagreeable odour of its long sword-like leaves when they are
D
190 RAMBLES IN SARK.
bruised, and by the large seed vessels which gape open as they
dry, disclosing the brilliant orange red seeds within. Butcher's
Broom 1s a stiff, prickly, dark green plant that produces round
berries of a vivid scarlet on the back of its leaves. A
curious point about this plant is that these so-called “ leaves ”
are not leaves at all, but simply flattened branches ending in a
sharp spine, while the real leaves are minute scales hardly
visible without a magnifying glass.
One of the most singular of Sark plants is Dodder, a
parasite that grows on gorse bushes and other things, covering
them with a mantle of silky threads of a fine purplish or
yellowish red. It has no leaves, but consists simply of a mass
of long slender stems that in autumn are covered with little
round bunches of pink flowers. Another very curious plant,
not a conspicuous one like Dodder, but quite tiny and
insignificant, is a little gem of great rarity in England, and
much prized by botanists in consequence, although hardly ene
person out of a hundred would ever suspect it to be a
flowering plant at all. It is the mossy 7%l/ea (these minute
things seldom have popular names) and it may be found in
dry stony places here and there on the cliffs by those who care
to search in early Spring, for it withers and disappears under
the May sun. The entire plant is not more than an inch long,
but it is of a bright ruby red colour, somewhat like a Stone-
crop in miniature, and the flowers are microscopic.
By way of contrast let us now look out for bigger things
than these. Here on the hillside is a beautiful cluster of tall
and stately Foxgloves, with their dappled purple bells, perhaps
the most showy and effective of all the gay blossoms on these
cliffs; and there a little further on is another plant that
resembles it in growth and general appearance, except that it
has yellow flowers. This is the Great Mullein, a soft woolly
plant that under favourable conditions will sometimes attain a
height of five feet or more.
Perchance in the course of our wanderings we may find a
specimen or two of Teasel, upright and rigid, with prickly
stem and rough leaves, the upper pair of which are united
together where they join the stem, so that they form a basin-
like hollow in which rainwater collects, and wandering insects
are drowned. By this character alone, and its large round
head of lilac-blue flowers, Teasel may always be recognised.
But a far more showy plant than this is Viper’s Bugloss, with
its bristly leaves and handsome trumpet-shaped flowers that
are reddish purple when they first open, and then afterwards
become deep blue.
RAMBLES IN SARK. 191
At the top of the cliffs in dry places, and occasionally in
waste corners in the interior of the island, we are very likely
to meet with Hemlock, a plant everybody has heard about,
but few people recognise, for there are several others that
look very much like it. In all stages of growth, however,
Hemlock may be known with certainty by its beautifully
divided leaves, and by the stems being quite smooth and
marked or spotted with dull purplish blotches. When bruised
it has a strong unpleasant smell, but it is a handsome plant,
although an extremely dangerous one, because every part of it
is highly poisonous. Speaking of poisonous plants reminds
one of another species, the Woody Nightshade, or Bittersweet,
found commonly in bushy places on the cliffs and elsewhere.
Its clustered flowers are very like potato blossoms, having the
five purple petals reflexed from a central yellow cone. The
Woody Nightshade must not be confused with the Deadly
Nightshade, a far more dangerous plant, which, however, does
not occur in Sark.
Among the floral treasures of this island there is a small
plant which is so exceedingly rare in England (it grows in one
locality only, in Devonshire) that it has not earned for itself
a popular name, but is known to botanists as Romulea (or
Trichonema) Columne. It occurs here abundantly on the
cliffs where the vegetation is dwarf and scanty, but although
the plants occur in profusion in suitable places, only a small
proportion of them blossom each year. The flowers, pale
purple with a yellow centre, appear early in April; they have
very short stalks, and are usually surrounded by a few long,
slender curly leaves that spring from a small bulb. Another
charming little bulbous plant called Ladies’ Tresses shows its
delicate spike of white flowers pretty frequently in turfy
places during August and September, just the season when the
beautiful blue stars of the Autumnal Squill begin to appear.
In looking about for these and other things, the eye is
sure to detect a host of flowers that were not noticed before
—they seem to spring up everywhere as if by magic—Cen-
taury, Tormentil, Ground Ivy, Field Madder, Cranesbill—it
would be easy to name a score of small plants in full blossom
scattered all about under one’s feet, so that it is difficult to
avoid treading them down in walking along.
As there are not anywhere in Sark low-lying commons
and sandy seashores such as we find in the other Channel
Islands, it accounts for the absence of a good many sand-
loving plants that are peculiar to those situations. But by
way of compensation there is a grand variety of species
192 RAMBLES IN SARK.
belonging to rocky coasts, most of them plants which are
never found far away from the sea, but flourish best when
within reach of the cool salt spray. Jiven a precipitous wall
of bare rock is dotted over with small bits of vegetation,
wherever a ledge or a cranny affords room for a particle of
soil to lodge. Cushions of pink-flowered Thrift, green tufts
of Samphire, clumps of Sea Campion, with fluttering white
flowers that look like flakes of foam, blue Sheepsbit, tough
roots of Portland Spurge, with its reddish stems and yellow-
green flowers, Navelwort, Sea Beet, Ivy, and many more, all
cling with a tenacious erip to the exposed face of the storm-
beaten granite cliff—and thrive. And in places where there
is no foothold for even these hardy plants, soft velvety mosses
and scaly lichens supply their place as the pioneers of
vegetation, aud furnish those little splashes of contrasting
colour which add so much charm and heauty to the landscape.
The depth and intensity of colour of many flowers that
are eommon on the cliffs and in the hedges, has often impressed
visitors on their arrival from the inland counties of England.
The bright rose-pink of the Red Campion, for instance, and
the clear blue of the Germander Speedwell, always appear to
be deeper and more vivid than usual, and this no doubt is
owing to the purity of the air and the abundant sunshine.
The mere mention of these two common plants suggests the
thought of leafy hedgebanks and winding lanes, therefore we
may as well see what these have to offer in the way of flowers.
But it is puzzling to know where to begin.
The beauty of the Sark lanes is perhaps at its highest
just at that glorious season of the year when the Cuckoo and
the Swallows return to us from the south, and the two wild
flowers that are pre-eminently associated with the merry
spring-time—Primroses and Bluebells—appear in all their
profusion. Primroses abound on every bank and hillside, and
everybody gathers them; but how many of those who gather
primroses by the handful have noticed that there are two
distinct forms of this beautiful flower, both of them equally
common, one with a sort of green pin’s-head in the centre ;
the other with a delicately tinted rosette instead ? Bluebells
are not quite so abundant, but where they grow thickly, as for
instance in Dixcart Valley, they make a splendid display of
colour that is hardly to be rivalled. It may be mentioned, in
passing, that this plant is the true English Bluebell or Wild
Hyacinth, which Shakespeare speaks of as the “ azured
harebell.” But the flower which in Scotland is called the
Bluebell is another kind of plant altogether.
RAMBLES IN SARK. 193
In early Spring the banks and hedges are spangled with
the golden stars of the Pilewort or Lesser Celandine, flowers
that positively dazzle the eyes by their brilliancy when the
sun shines upon them. Later on the Hawthorn bushes fill the
air with fragrance, and tempt one to gather boughs laden with
bloom. Whatever could have originated the stupid super-
stition that to take home hawthorn blossom always brings bad
luck ? And how is it that the belief is so deeply rooted in the
minds of even well-educated people ?
At this time of the year in shady, sheltered places may
be seen the dark green arrow-shaped leaves and singular
flowers of the Cuckoopint or Wild Arum, a strange looking
plant known under fifty different names in various parts of
England. <A pale green spathe or hood protects the delicately
tinted club on which the essential parts of the flower are
situated ; in autumn, when both flowers and leaves have
completely disappeared, their place will be taken by the fruit,
in the shape of a bunch of red, coral-like berries. The Karly
Purple Orchis is another striking species that puts forth its
handsome blossoms in April; and so is the Green-veined
Garlic, an excessively rare plant in England, easily recognised
by its clusters of white flowers, and the strong onion-like
odour of its leaves.
As summer advances new species appear in rapid
succession and almost bewildering variety ; but we can detect
family likenesses. The Buttercups, and Thistles, and Spurges,
and St. John’s worts, all more or less resemble each other in
the flowers ; but when you look closely at them, and compare
their leaves and manner of growth, you begin to wonder why
you had never perceived before that instead of being all the
same kind, they are really quite distinct.
Here on the roadside we meet with a miscellaneous
collection of little plants, a mixture of vegetation popularly
classed under the scornful designation of ‘ weeds,” as if
implying that they are beneath notice. One of the commonest
of these roadside waifs and strays 1s the Scarlet Pimpernel, or
Poor Man’s Weatherglass, so called because it invariably
closes its petals on the approach of rain. In one or two places
in this island its near relative, the Blue Pimpernel, has been
found. It is exactly like the common red one in every respect,
except that the flowers are a rich violet blue, and it is always
rare. Then there is the Common Cudweed and the Marsh
Cudweed, both of them ashey grey and without showy flowers ;
the Petty Spurge, filled like all the Spurges with a milky
juice that blisters the skin of sensitive fingers; the Dead
194. RAMBLES IN SARK.
Nettles, small plants not in the least like nettles, and quite
incapable of stinging ; the small Bindweed, with pink funnel-
shaped flowers ; two or three kinds of Speedwell, with flowers
of clearest blue ; Shepherd’s Purse, easy to distinguish by its
triangular pouch-like seed vessels ; Cinquefoil, Knotgrass,
Silverweed, and several kinds of Dock.
One could easily make out quite a lengthy list of plants
that appear to thrive on dusty roadsides; but nearly all of
them are found also as weeds in gardens and cultivated ground
in general. In rich soil they grow more luxuriant, as on the
borders of cornfields and among agricultural crops; and in
such places other species grow among them, plants like the
Corn Cockle, Red Poppy, Small Snapdragon, Sun Spurge,
Corn Marigold, Spurrey, and Mercury.
These weeds of the roadside and cultivated ground grow
in soil which has been in some way prepared by human
operations ; and thus they differ from plants that grow in
virgin soil on the cliffs or in places where the ground has never
been ploughed or otherwise disturbed by man. The latter are
the true natives, the original inhabitants of this region, dating
back their ancestry to the remote period when these rocky
slopes first became “ with verdure clad,” and man had not as
yet appeared upon the scene. The weeds of our fields and
gardens are not true natives by descent, but have all been
introduced at a much later date from elsewhere, and always
through the direct or indirect agency of man. [Even at the
present time new species are continually being brought in
among agricultural seeds, ballast and produce arriving from
foreign countries or from distant parts of our own land ; and
some of them succeed in establishing themselves in their new
home. But thisis a digression. Let us return to our roadside
banks and hedges.
Allusion has been made to the almost endless diversity
that exists in the shape of leaves ; but there is one peculiar
shape which is found only in two British plants, so that it is
easy to recognise them by the leaves alone. These are the
Wall Pennywort, also called the Navelwort, and the Marsh
Pennywort. The leaves in both species are round, and the
leafstalk springs from the centre of the leaf instead of from
one end in the ordinary way, so that the leaf assumes
somewhat the appearance of a mushroom. The Navelwort is
very common in Sark, growing in plenty on old walls, dry
banks, and thatched roofs; while the Marsh Pennywort
(which has similar but smaller leaves) occurs in wet grassy
places or marshy streamsides, and the little white flowers are
RAMBLES IN SARK. 195
generally concealed by overgrowing vegetation. Compare
these smooth round leaves with the feathery foliage of Yarrow,
the elegantly divided leaves of Fumitory, or the fern-like ones
of Hedge Parsley. Little boys and girls will find a delightful
amusement during the holidays in collecting specimens of all
the different kinds of leaves they meet with, pressing them
between old newspapers under a heavy weight until they are
thoroughly dry, and then gumming them down in the blank
pages of a common exercise book. Very soon an interesting
collection of beautiful leaf-forms will have accumulated,
recalling many a pleasant walk and recollections of days gone
by. And perhaps, who knows? some day this unpretentious
bundle of dried leaves may gradually develop into a thoroughly
scientific and really valuable herbarium of British plants.
Now it is time to specify two or three of the noteworthy
rarities of Sark, and if the incipient botanist in a burst of
enthusiasm starts off at once to search for them, and returns
unsuccessful, let him not be discouraged, for the plants will
not run away but will remain growing where they are, to be
discovered another day. First then, the Yellow Pimpernel,
an elegant creeping plant with trailing stems, bright leaves
and flowers like golden stars. The interesting point about
this species is that it grows nowhere in the Channel Islands
but in Sark. Then there is the Deptford Pink, with its
delicate rosy blossoms, found in a few localities in the interior
of the island, but absent in Guernsey and Jersey. To a
botanist, however, the greatest prize and treasure of all is the
French Cudweed, a continental plant which does not occur
anywhere else either in the Channel Islands or in the United
Kingdom. It is rather a neat-looking, unobtrusive species,
with grey-green foliage and brownish flowers, of the unmis-
takable Cudweed type. It grows plentifully enough in one or
two fields in a cert&in part of the island which it is better not
to specify too minutely lest the plant should be thinned out by
thoughtless collectors. |
So much harm has been done to local floras in this way
by persons who gather plants greedily, that one hesitates to
publish the exact habitat of any special rarity. Even in Sark
much mischief has been done. The grandest of all the British
ferns—the Osmunda, or Royal Fern—has been practically
eradicated by the persistent digging up of roots, so that at the
present day it grows only in one spot on the cliffs, where
fortunately it is quite inaccessible. In the same way another
beautiful fern, the Sea Spleenwort, has entirely disappeared
from most of its former stations, and is now very seldom to be
196 RAMBLES IN SARK.
found growing within reach. Twenty or thirty years ago
there were to my knowledge scores of little caverns and
recesses on the coast tapestried with this fern from floor to
roof—giant roots sometimes, with fronds two or three feet
long.
Fourteen ferns grow wild in Sark, of which the most
striking and ornamental, as well as perhaps the most widely
distributed, is the Harts Tongue. Other fairly common
species are the Lady Fern, the Male Fern, the common
Polypody, the Black Spleenwort and the Lanceolate Spleen-
wort. The last named is the best fern that grows here, for it
is restricted to the maritime counties of the south and west,
and is not found at all in the east of England.
There are five ferns which are decidedly rare in Sark—
the Broad Fern, the Angular Shield Fern, the Hard Fern,
the Rue-leaved Spleenwort, and the Maidenhair Spleenwort.
The similarity of name must not lead to the confusion of the
last one with the true Maidenhair Fern, a species which has
now become exceedingly scarce in ingland, and does not grow
wild anywhere in the Channel Islands. Finally there is the
common Bracken, or Brake fern, that flourishes on the cliffs
by the acre, covering them with a mantle of deep green in
summer, and ruddy brown in autumn, and always forming one
of the principal features of a Sark landscape.
In the course of our erratic wanderings we have not as
yet had occasion to follow the course of some little streamlet
that winds down a cliff valley on its way to the ocean; nor
have we examined any marshy spots and wet corners, swampy
in winter, when the rains have come, but in summertime the
abode of many a beautiful plant, both large and small. For
anyone who really loves wild flowers, and takes pleasure in
searching for them, all sorts of little surprises are in store;
not so much because the plants are specially interesting from
a strictly scientific point of view, but because while sauntering
alone ‘in profitable idleness,’ as Wordsworth has it, one
comes upon them quite unexpectedly in all their native
wildness and beauty.
Here in a moist corner, overhung by tangled bushes of
hawthorn and bramble, is a plantation of Yellow Flags, with
big golden blossoms and erect sword-like leaves, among which
rises a tall Water Figwort, noticeable by its square stem and
small dark-coloured flowers, much visited by wasps for the
sake of their honey. A few yards further off among the
rank vegetation which luxuriates in the wet ground, we find
the Bog Stitchwort, the Fleabane, the fragrant Water Mint,
| il
RAMBLES IN SARK. 197
and a plant or two of the Small Spearwort, which is really a
buttercup, with spear-shaped or lanceolate leaves.
Yellow seems to be the predominating colour among
flowers just here, for we shall see in the marshy parts of the
valley the square-stemmed St. John’s Wort, the Marsh
Bird’s-foot Trefoil, and the Marsh Kyebright. The sticky
clamminess of the stem and leaves of the last-named plant are
sufficient to distinguish it ; and although very pretty when
growing, it is the reverse when dried, for it always turns black.
The two large waterplants with succulent stems that grow
matted together and overshadow the stream that wets their
roots, are the Marshwort and the Water Parsnip. The foliage
is bright and cool, but the flat-topped flowerheads of tiny
white blossoms are not particularly showy. That tall leafy
plant, four or five feet high, with large handsome leaves, is
Hemp Agrimony. In September it will expand its big purple
flower tassels to attract the Red Admiral butterflies with their
gorgeous wings of black velvet spotted with scarlet and
white.
Now let us look out for a dripping earthy bank on which
mosses and liverworts grow, and not much besides. We shall
very likely find there the Bog Pimpernel, a small plant with
creeping stems and pale pink flowers ; and then going on to
some shady recess in the bank partly concealed by ‘the vegeta
tion, and peering in with sharp eyes, we may, if fortune
favours us, detect the threadlike trailing stems and tiny round
leaves of the Cornish moneywort, a most lovely and delicate
plant, fit to decorate the abode of the Queen of the Fairies.
This again is one of the rarities of Sark.
Elsewhere on this or some other streamlet bank, as well
as in wet places in other parts of the island may be found the
ever-charming Forget-me-not, with its lovely light blue flowers,
the rose-coloured Lousewort, the violet blue Self-heal, and
several other species that love moist situations. Here and
there some of these places are quite gay in spring and early
summer with the lilac-purple spikes of the Spotted Orchis, and
the white blossoms of Lady’s Smock, or Cuckoo flowers, as
the children call them. And then later in the year, when all
these flowers have disappeared and autumn has come, their place
will be taken by Willow Herb, and Water Pepper and Brook-
lime, the last named a most beautiful water plant often
mistaken for Forget-me-not, though the flowers are of a much
brighter and deeper blue. Those who have patience to search
and eyes to see will find in this small island no kind of
locality more productive of plant life, in all its variety and
198 - RAMBLES IN SARK.
beauty, than the marshy banks and swampy borders of the
little cliff-streams that meander among the fernclad hills.
Wild flowers of many colours, shapes and sizes, we have
now gathered in the course of our wanderings, and many
remarkable forms of floral beauty which we had never noticed
before have attracted our attention; but not one of them all
is So curious as the one which has been reserved for the last—
Duckweed. No one but an expert botanist would imagine
that the little plant known as Duckweed is just as truly a
flowering plant as a Daisy or a Violet—and yet it is so. In
pools and roadside ditches, in old wells and cattle-troughs, the
surface of the water is sometimes covered with little detached
particles that are crowded together and form a yellowish
green floating scum. [Hach of these little particles consists of
an oval or roundish frond or leaflet, which all its life floats
upon the water in company with myriads of others, and each
frond has a single hairlike rootlet hanging from the under
side. Now, the surprising thing is this: that each one of
these floating particles is a complete and full-grown plant,
although it possesses neither stem nor leaves. Its mode of
increase is by budding, and only on very rare occasions
it produces flowers ; and, as may be supposed, these are of the
most rudimentary description.
Here our rambles in Sark in search of wild flowers come
to anend. The lover of nature, to whom the “ flower in the
crannied wall” is a thing of beauty, no matter whether it be
rare or not, will continually find here at every turn, and during
all seasons of the year, something fresh to admire, linger over,
and study. And this need not be only among the flowers ;
there are gems of exquisite beauty in the delicate mosses that
lurk half concealed amid the larger vegetation, or spread their
velvet cushions upon the wayside boulders, And _ strange
examples of lowly plant life are met with in the scaly lichens
that clothe those stupendous rock masses with broad patches
of rich brown, silver grey and olive, or with that glorious
orange glow that tips the sea rocks, and, as Ruskin finally
says, “reflects the sunsets of a thousand years.”
THE ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY.
BY ERIC W. SHARP.
0
THE shores of Guernsey and the Channel Islands in general
have long been known to Marine Zoologists because of their
remarkable richness in species. Many eminent and well-
known scientists have worked here with great success in their
respective branches. Among others may be mentioned Canon
A. M. Norman, Dr. Gwyn Jeffries, Mr. J. T. Marshall, W.
Joshua Alder and Dr. Bowerbank.
Although all forms of marine life are found here in
abundance and variety, none exceedl the Ascidians in either
plentifulness or striking coloration. These Ascidians form
what is perhaps the least known group of marine animals.
Very few people, outside the circle of naturalists, have
the vaguest ideas as to what they are and what they look
like. Hence it has been thought best to give an account
in this paper of their appearance, structure and life history.
The name Ascidian is derived from tho Greek ** Askos,”
meaning a bottle, and this well describes the form of many
species, especially the simple forms. The other name for
these animals is “ Tunicata,” given them because of their
thick outer covering or tunic.
The Ascidians are chiefly rock-haunting animals and
may be seen on practically any piece of our coast adhering to
rocks or seaweed. Some, however, are free-swimming and
lead pelagic lives far out in the ocean, while others live buried
in the sand.
Many species live solitary lives attached to the rock by
their end or side. These are called the “Simple Ascidians,”
and are generally of large size. Ciona intestinalis, a common
form with us, may reach the length of about eight inches.
In other species the individuals are grouped together into
colonies, not embedded in a common covering, but arising
from a creeping stem or stolon, which contains prolongations
of the blood system. These are known as the Social Asci-
dians. <A third great group is made up of the Compound
Ascidians. These are colonies of small animals completely
embedded in a common covering. The colonies are often
[1910.]
200 ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY.
large and usually brilliantly coloured. In fact the colour of
these animals varies between black and white in Botryllus
morio to brilliant vermilion in Leptoclinum lacazii. The free-
swimming forms mentioned above are phosphorescent, as are
also many of the deep-water species.
One of the large Simple Ascidians may be described as
an example of the class. The structure of the individuals in
the colonial species is essentially the same as that: of a simple
one. Let us take the common Ascidia mentula.
This is a large form, often five to six inches long, of a red
colour and leathery to the touch. This leathery feel is due to
the thick outer covering, called the test, which is the pro-
tecting layer of the boly. In our example it is about a quarter
of an inch thick, anl small molluses and crustaceans inhabit
holes in its substance. In some spectes, however, the test is
soft and gelatinous. Lining the test is a delicate membrane
by which it is secreted.
On pressing the animal two streams of water are ejected
with some force. One comes from an opening at or near the
apex, called the Branchial Orifice ; while the second stream
of water is emitted from another opening further down one
side known as the Atrial Orifice.
On close inspection the sides of both openings are found
to be split into lobes—in our example eight for the Branchial
and six for the Atrial. This is an important character be-
cause the number of lobes is exact and constant for certain
genera and families, e.g., Molgula, 6 and 4; Cynthia, both
4 lobed; Ascidia, 8 and 6; Diazona, both 6 lobed; while
those of Clavellina are not lobed at all.
The branchial aperture is anterior, that is to say, it
corresponds with the head region of man, while the atrial
aperture is dorsal, corresponding to the back region of man.
The apical opening or branchial orifice leads into a
wonderful sac suspended in the cavity of the Ascidian. This
sac, which is the pharynx, is called the branchial sac and its
walls are pierced by innumerable slits called “ stigmata.” Its
substance is hollowed out by countless blood: vessels and the
water continually washing through the stigmata oxygenates
the blood. Hence the branchial sac is the breathing organ
of the Ascidian. The water, after passing through the stig-
mata, goes into the general body cavity or atrium and escapes
through the atrial aperture.
The branchial sac gradually narrows posteriorly and
finally leads into the cesophagus and thence to the stomach.
The mechanism required to transfer food to the stomach is
ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY. 201
most interesting. This food consists of minute organisms
floating in the water, and these are strained and filtered out of
it by means of a circle of hair-like tentacles, which may be
simple or branched, situated within the branchial orifice.
Behind this circle there are two closely placed parallel ridges
forming a groove, the sides of which are richly ciliated. This
eroove 18 filled with a sticky substance secreted by a long,
rod-like gland called the “endostyle,” lying on the ventral
side of the branchial sac. The food particles which have
become entangled in the mucus are swept by ciliary action
into another canal, called the “ dorsal lamina,” lying opposite
the endostyle and communicating with the stomach. This
dorsal lamina may have tags on the margin that in some
Ascidians become long processes called “languets.” Fecal
matter is ejected with the waste or filtered water.
While speaking about the branchial sac, blood-vessels
were mentioned. These join up and take blood to the heart,
which is a very different organ from ours. It is simply a
shghtly swollen tube along which waves of contraction pass,
thus forcing the blood on its way. After a certain number of
pulsations, ont 70, in one direction they cease and recom-
mence in the opposite direction. Hence the blood-vessels
become veins and arteries alternately.
The nerves that govern the actions of the animal proceed
from a solitary ganglion which is situated between the two
apertures. Sense organs are absent, but sensory cells are
found in various parts of the body, notably round the orifices.
The thin margins of the siphons are apparently the most
sensitive regions.
Ascidians are hermaphrodite and the egg gives rise to a
free-swimming larva. Great interest centres around this
larva, because it tells us a wonderful story, for it proves that
the Ascidian parent, although seemingly a mere _ lifeless,
motionless lump of jelly, is in ‘veality a vertebrate in disguise.
The larva, which closely resembles a tadpole, swims by means
of a long tail; it possesses a notochord supporting a spinal
cord swelling anteriorly into a brain ; it has a single eye with
retina and lens, besides an organ of hearing.
Its swims actively, but for a very short time, usually
much less than a day, and then settles down head first and
attaches itself by means of cement organs on the head. Then
commences the retrograde metamorphosis leading to the full
erown stage. The tail is drawn in, the notochord and spinal
cord are absorbed or dissolved in the body juices, the brain
disappears and the nerve tissue dwindles down to the single
202 ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY.
ganglion found in the adult. The sensory organs disappear,
but the alimentary canal and gonads increase greatly in size.
Thus the adult form gives us no hint whatever as to its rela-
tionship with the vertebrates.
Before their life history was known these Ascidians were
classed with the Polyzoa (Sea-mats) and Brachiopods ( Lamp-
shells) under the name of Mulluscoida. They were considered
to be relations of the Molluscs, but later research has placed
them much higher up the scale of animal life. This is a good
instance of the importance of knowing the complete life-
history of an animal before referring it to one or other of the
great groups of animals.
No mention has been made of that remarkable creature
known to naturalists as the Lancelet ( Amphioxus lanceolatus ).
This has affinities with both the Ascidians and the higher
vertebrates. It is a fish-like, free-swimming animal about
three inches long, of transparent structure. It spends most of
its time in the sand but can swim on occasion. It has a noto-
chord stretching from head to tail, besides a dorsal nerve
tube, which is remarkable for the fact that it contains sensory
spots inside it. The notochord stretches the entire leugth of
the body, instead of stopping off about the middle of the cra-
nium asin the higher Vertebrates. Although these structures
are permanent, and not only larval as in the Tunicates, there
is a great gap between it and the lowest of the fishes. It has
no distinct cranium and so naturalists have proposed to esta-
blish for it a class called the Acraniata, while the fishes and
other higher forms compose the Craniata,
Turning now from the book to the seashore we must look
in many different places to find all the Tunicates in their
natural homes. They are ubiquitous, having been found in
all seas from the Arctic regions to the Tropics, and from
between tide-marks to a depth of over 2,000 fathoms. As an
indication of the deep water in which these soft-bodied crea-
tures can live, it may be stated that Hypobythius calycodes
was obtained in the N. Pacific at 2,900 fathoms or over three
miles vertical depth, while Abyssasctdia Wyvillit came up
from 2,600 fathoms off the South of Australia. Both of these
species are simple forms.
But although many species live in deep water, the rocks
fairly low down the tide range will be found to yield many
species of Ascidians, while seaweeds and stones are often
covered profusely with the compound forms. Vermilion
patches are frequently seen coating comparatively large areas ;
these are colonies of Leptoclinum lacazii. Mr. Sinel of J ersey
ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY. 203
thinks that colonies of this species constitute the splashes of
blood referred to by Victor Hugo in his “ Toilers of the Sea”
when describing the caves of the Roches Douvres. The indus-
trious stone turner is amply rewarded for his trouble and labour
by the rich harvest of Ascidians he reaps. Here are to be
found the small patches of a blue species for which Mr. Sinel
proposes the name of Leptoclinum ceruleum. The beautiful
transparent vases of Clavellina may often be seen here in
company with a smaller relation, Perophora listeri. The
beauties of the multitudinous species of Botry/lus to be found
on the rocks and stones baftle description, while the simple
forms are here in plenty.
Leaving the rocks for the moment and continuing our
search among the sandy parts of our coast we find that some
few species, of the genera Molgula and Eugyra chiefly, live
entirely unattached and are usually covered with a coating of
sand which serves as a protective covering. The Zostera beds
at or below half tide mark are a splendid hunting ground.
Members of the genera Moleula, Diastoma, Botryllus and
Aplidium are common on the stems of the Zostera or in the
sand at their base.
The individuals of this great class are remarkable for
their beauty of tint, but unfortunately there is no lquid
known that will preserve their colours. The Simple Ascidians
are easy to preserve in formalin (a 2°/, solution of the com-
mercial Formaldehyde is very good), but few of the compound
forms make goods xhibits, as any kind of preservative fluid
alters their appearance. Botryllus morio, a black and white
species, looks well in formalin, while the beautiful F. elegans
keeps its colour for a considerable period.
As stated before, any rocky coast will furnish the collector
with many species ; according to my experience the best
hunting grounds are L’Islet, Cobo, Lihou Causeway, Bor-
deaux Harbour and Pleinmont Point.
I am not aware that any proper list of the Ascidians
of these islands has ever been published. In the second
edition of Ansted’s “ Channel Islands,” p. 219, there is a short
list of bare names, but it is not of much use. That is why I
venture to present to the Society the present paper. The list
given can only be regarded as a piecing together of the
scattered lists which make up our present knowledge of
the local Ascidians. It appears to me that if a person with
an unlimited amount of spare time took up the search for new
species, his efforts would be rewarded by the doubling of the
present list. Deep water research around our coasts is badly
204 ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY.
needed and is sure to reveal many additional species, while
tow-netting ought to add new free-swimming forms.
In the following list will be found records of 76 species,
comprising Canon Norman’s list of simple forms and the result
of my own collecting.
In conclusion I wish to return my thanks to Dr. H.
Fleure and Mr. J. Sinel for their kindness in identifying a
large number of my specimens, and to Mr. F. Wright for help —
in collecting. To Prof. Herdman I am indebted for very
kindly sending me his “ Revised Classification of the Tuni-
cates,” which has been of the greatest assistance tome. Any-
one wanting a good account of the Tunicates, their habits,
structure and life history, is advised to read Prof. Herdman’s
* Ascidia,” which is No. I. of the Liverpool Marine Biological
Committee’s memoirs.
TUNICATA.
ORDER I.—ASCIDIACEA. SuB-ORDER I.—AsciDI4 SIMPLICES.
FAMILY I.—MOLGULIDZ.
Solitary, often not fixed ; branchial sac longitudinally folded ; branchial
orifice 6 lobed, atrial 4 lobed; test usually sandy ; stigmata more or less
curved, usually in spirals ; tentacles compound.
Eugyra globosa (Han). Dredged off Fermain (Jeffreys and Norman).
Gonads single, crossing over intestinal loop. Body entirely covered with
sand. ‘Test soft, thin and fibrillated
Molgula impura (Heller). Channel Islands (Sinel). Havelet and Roc-
quaine Bays (Sharp). Six folds on each side of branchial sac and small
papille on each edge of the stigmata.
M. oculata (Ffordes). Guernsey (Norman). Siphons retracted between
folds of test ; no sand between siphons.
M. complanata (Ald. and Han.) Guernsey, dredged adhering to a dead
limpet shell (Jeffreys and Norman).
M. ineonspieua (Ald. and Han.) Guernsey, dredged (Jeffreys and Norman).
FamILy II.—CYNTHIIDZ,
Solitary, fixed, test usually leathery. Branchial and atrial apertures
both 4 lobed. Stigmata straight. Tentacles simple or compound.
Miecroecosmus elaudicans (Sav.) Guernsey (Alder). Test tough, wrinkled
and red. Branchial orifice striped rose and yellow.
Cynthia squamulosa (A/d.) Guernsey (Alder). Body oval, pink tinged
with lac. Inner surface of test soft and white.
C. morus (Forbes). Guernsey (Alder).
C. ovata (?) Guernsey, dredged (Jeffreys and Norman).
Forbesella tessellata (Fortes). Guernsey, dredged off Castle Cornet
(Alder). Lihou, Bordeaux, Alderney (Sharp). The body is depressed ;
test firm and modified to form plates. Colour yellow marked with pur-
plish spots.
F. limaeina (Forbes). Guernsey (Ansted). Lihou (Sharp). Body much
depressed, with orange coloured, coriaceous test. It is marked with dark
spots enclosing small warts. Professor Herdman remarks ‘‘ The Cynthia
limacina of Forbes is either the same species or very closely related to it,
und probably therefore comes also into this genus.”’
ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY. 205
Styela tuberosa (MacGillivray). Guernsey (Alder). Body conical, pale
brown, orifices pinkish, test thick, tough and wrinkled.
S. mamillaris (Gertner). Guernsey (Norman). Body irregular and deeply
lobed.
S. pomaria (Savigny). Guernsey (Hodge and Brady). Gouliot Caves
(Norman).
S. humilis (?). St. Peter-Port, dredged (Alder). Test thin, sandy, and
covered with short hairs.
S. variabilis (?). Guernsey and Herm (Hodge, Brady and Norman).
S. obseura (?). Guernsey, dredged (Jeffreys and Norman).
S. fibrillata (?). Guernsey (Norman).
S. depressa (?). Guernsey (Norman).
Styelopsis grossularia (7raustedt). 1’ Islet, Bordeaux and Castle Cornet
(Sharp). Apertures 4 lobed; folds of branchial sac reduced to one on
or near the dorsal edge of the right ride, the other 7 being quite rudi-
mentary. This species may be seen by thousands at L’Islet. Not so
plentiful in Alderney.
Polyearpa glomerata (4/d.) Vazon and Cobo (Sharp). Very common
on seaweed washed up ; the rocks at Terres Point are covered with this
form. Body sessile. Orifices usually 4 lobed. Branchial sac with four
folds or less on each side. In this particular species there are three folds
on right side and two on the left.
FAMILY III.—ASCIDIIDZ.
Solitary, fixed ; test gelatinous ; branchial orifice 8 lobed, atrial 6 lobed.
Branchial sac not folded; stigmata straight or curved. Tentacles simple,
filiform.
Corella parallelogramma (Muller). Guernsey (Ansted). Atrial aperture
sessile or on short siphon. Musculature strong on left side.
Asecidiella seabra (Muller). Guernsey (Alder). Dorsal lamina with edge
toothed or irregular. Body attached by a large area. Stigmata 12 in a
mesh.
Ascidia mentula (JZuiler). Castle Cornet (Wright). Bordeaux, Lihou,
L’Islet, Alderney (Sharp). This form is common with us and attains a
large size, often six inches. The test is thick and red, with bright red
orifices. Atrial orifice more than quarter way down the body. A small
bivalve, Modiolaria marmorata, is often found in cavities of the test.
A. robusta (Hancock). Guernsey (Norman). Herm (Br. Tun.) Cobo, in
Laminaria washed up (Sharp). Test tough with root-like prolongations.
Apertures tubular.
A. rubrotineta (Han.) Guernsey (Norman). Test thin, pellucid and carti-
laginous with orifices wide apart.
A. plana (Han.) Guernsey (Alcer). Body smooth, oval, yellow. Test
thick and cartilaginous.
A. Alderi (Hav.) Guernsey (Alder). Body conical, yellow. The ends of
the blood vessels appear on the surface as red bunches of tubes.
A. aculeata (Alder). Guernsey (Norman). Bordeaux (Fleure), L’Islet
and Lihou (Sharp). Test thin, greenish and covered with spiny processes.
A. amoena (?). Guernsey (Norman).
Ciona intestinalis (Linneus). Castle Cornet (Wright). Common at Lihou,
L’Islet, Bordeaux (Sharp). Alderney (Sharp). Test thin, yellowish
green ; siphons highly retractile. Mantle vermilion. This seems to be
a favourite home for small animals, both parasitic and otherwise. Three
such have come under my notice.
E
206 ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY.
T.—Drepanophorus rubrostriatus is a small worm that lives in the
interior and which swims in and out of either orifice indiseriminately.
Mr. F. Wright was, I believe, the first to record it as living in Ascidia.
Il.—WNotodelphys ascidicola, a small one-eyed crustacean, lives in the
branchial sac.
III.—Mr. F. Wright, late of the Guille-Allés Library, discovered a
true external parasite. It is a crustacean whose front legs are developed
as formidable clasping organs. It has not yet been identified.
This species of Ascidian is easily kept in an aquarium where its
habits can be easily studied.
C. pulehella (Alder). Guernsey, dredged (Norman). Body elongated,
cylindrical, and of ared colour. It is highly retractile.
C. eanina (Miller). Bordeaux (Fleure). Lihou (Sharp). Colour brown,
mantle vermilion. Attached at one end by short processes of the test.
FAaMILy LV.—CLAVELINIDZA.
Simple Ascidians reproducing by gemmation to form colonies. Hach
individual with a distinct test, but all communicating by a common blood
system contained in a creeping stem or stolon. Tentacles simple; branchial
sac not folded ; stigmata straight.
Diazona hebridiea (Forbes and Goodsir). Guernsey, deep water (Alder and
Norman). Colony massive, with individuals arising from a massive base.
They have no pigmented circle round the siphons.
Clavelina lepadiformis (Muller). Guernsey and Herm (Alder). Lihou,
Pea Stacks, Bordeaux, &c. Common (Sharp).
Forms beautiful, erect transparent vases streaked with yellow or
brown lines.
C. Rissoana (Milne- Edw.) Bordeaux (Sharp). 12 to 16 rows of stigmata ;
white lines of pigment on thorax.
Perophora listeri (Wiegm.) Bordeaux, Lihou (Sharp). The colonies look
like beds of cooked tapioca.
SuB-ORDER IIl.—Ascipi2 ComposiTiZ€ (Savigny).
FAMILY I.—BOTRYLLIDZE (Giard).
Ascidiozooids short and not divided into regions. Colony usually thin
and incrusting. Systems circular, elliptical, or forming branched lines.
Test usually soft ; branchial sac well developed, internal bars predent, stig-
mata numerous.
Botryllus smaragdus (/.-#dw.) Common in Guernsey (Sharp). Alder-
ney. Matrix dark green, stars pale green.
B. violaceus (i/.-Hdw.) Common in Guernsey (Sharp). Alderney (Sharp).
Stars and matrix blue with white lines.
B. rubigo (Giard). Bordeaux (Sharp). Brown, with red marks.
B. aurolineatus (Giard). Bordeaux, L’Islet, Havelet Bay (Sharp). Brown
with white and red markings. Ascidiozooids 25 mms. 8 to 10 in system.
B. myosotis (Giard). Havelet Bay (Sharp). This one resembles the familiar
forget-me-not.
B. bivittatus (i/.-Hdw.) Lihou (Sharp). Matrix ash-grey, individuals
with two yellow rings round mouth and cloaca.
B. morio (Giard). Common in Guernsey (Sharp). Alderney (Sharp).
Matrix black ; stars white.
B. gemmeus (Sav.) Lihou (Sharp). Matrix violet-grey ; stars yellow or
greyish-gold. Systems widely separate.
B. polyelyelus (?). Lihou, Vazon (Sharp). Matrix grey; stars bluish or
purple.
Botrylloides rotifera (M.-£dw.) Lihou and Alderney (Sharp). Yellow
with red marks.
ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY. 207
B. Leachii (Sav.) Pleinmont Point, Alderney (Sharp). Purple with yellow
and white marks.
B. rubrum (J/.- Edw.) Wavelet Bay (Sharp). Yellow tored. 4 tentacles.
B. albicans (1/.-Edw.) Lihou (Sharp). Pure white.
B. pusilla (Alder). Guernsey (Ansted).
B. sparsa (4lder). Guernsey (Ansted).
FAMILY II.—DISTOMID (Giard).
Ascidiozooids divided into two regions, thorax and abdomen. Colony,
rounded and massive, rarely incrusting. Systems irregular, inconspicuous or
absent. ‘Testes numerous, vas deferens not spirally coiled.
Distoma rubrum (Sav.) Bordeaux, Castle Cornet, L’Islet (Sharp). Colony
red. More than three rows of stigmata. A red planarian worm may
sometimes be seen gliding over this species, thus affording a splendid
example of protective coloration. It has not yet been identified.
D. vitreum (Sav.) Wall of stomach grooved longitudinally ; 12 of stigmata.
Guernsey (Ansted). Cobo (Sharp).
Prof. Herdman remarks ‘‘ D. vitrewm is either the D. cristallinum
(Ren.), or closely related to it.’’ Also that D. rubrum is either the D.
variolosum of Geertner or close to it.
FAMILY IITI-—POLYCLINIDZ.
Ascidiozooids divided into three distinct regions. Branchial aperture 6
to 8 lobed ; atrial often with atrial languet. Colony usually massive ; some-
times incrusting, lobed or even pedunculated. Systems of various shapes.
Common cloacal aperture, usually inconspicuous. Branchial sac usually
small ; stigmata usually small.
Aurantium aurantium (J/.-Edw.) ‘‘ This genus or sub-genus seems to
differ from Polyclinum merely in having the systems compound ’’ (Herd-
man]. Castle Cornet, Albert Harbour, Terres Point (Sharp).
Polyelinum ficus (Sav.) Cobo (Sharp). Post abdomen attached to poste-
rlor end of abdomen. Not gelatinous; colonr olive green. This species
exudes a most unpleasant odour when broken.
Aplidium fallax (Johns). Lihou, L’Islet and Bordeaux (Sharp). Atrial
languet not bifurcated. Ten grooves on stomach. Surface studded with
black and white specks.
A. zostericola (Giard). L’Islet, Bordeaux, Lihou (Sharp). Stomach
grooves 10 or more; colony not sandy; branchial sac not pigmented.
Forms small rounded colonies on Zostera.
A. gelatinosum (?). Albert Harbour (Sharp). This forms white, flocculent
masses attached to Zostera.
Amaroucium Nordmanni (i.-Hdw.) Guernsey (Ansted). Colony mas-
sive ; branchial orifice 6 lobed; systems simple, regular, and with few
Ascidiozooids. Colour rose.
A. albicans (1/.-Hdw.) Atrial languet tri-lobed. Forms white nodular
masses. Lihou, Cobo, Vazon (Sharp).
A. proliferum (M.-Edw.) Guernsey (Ansted). Lihou (Sharp). Orange-
red fleshy masses, generally lobed, occasionally incrusting.
Morechellium argus (J/.-Edw.) Common in many places round the coast
(Sharp). Alderney (Sharp). Colony pedunculated, systems inconspi-
cuous. Ascidiozooids not distinctly marked into regions. Branchial
orifice 6 lobed. Test gelatinous ; branchial sac large and well developed.
Dark orange or red in colour.
Parasecidia Forbesi (Alder). Guernsey (Ansted). Ascidiozooids divided
into thorax, abdomen and post abdomen. Branchial orifice 8 lobed.
208 ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY.
Post abdomen separated from abdomen by a constriction. Colony flat-
topped or lobulated ; colour amber.
Fragarium elegans (Giard). Castle Cornet, Terres Point, Alderney ;
common (Sharp). Colour rose red lined with white spots It lives in
crevices of the rock.
FAMILY IV.—DIDEMNIDZ& (Giard).
Colony usually flat, thin and incrusting. Systems complicated and
irregular, inconspicuous or absent. Test with stellate calcareous spicules.
Testes single and large, vas deferens spirally coiled.
Leptoclinum fulgidum (i/.-Hdw.) Bordeaux, Lihou and Terres Point
(Sharp). This forms small red patches under stones.
L. laeazii (Giard). Bordeaux, Cobo, Alderney ; not very common (Sharp).
Brilliant vermilion, forming patches of large size.
L. maculatum (J/.- Edw.) Common at many places, especially Terres
Point and on Laminaria. Alderney (Sharp). This forms white and
purple crusts. Vas deferens has 12 turns.
L. gelatinosum (/.-EHdw.) Vazon, Havelet, Bordeaux, Alderney (Sharp).
The only Leptoclinum whose substance is gelatinous.
L. asperum (.-Edw.) Vazon and Lihou (Sharp). This forms white and
grey patches on stones, &c.
L. Listerianum (?). Vazon, Bordeaux and Lihou (Sharp). Forms grey,
slimy crusts speckled with black and white
L
- punetatum (forbes). Bordeanx (Sharp).
FAMILY VII.—POLYSTYELID& (Herdman).
Colony massive or incrusting. No common cloacal cavities present.
Ascidiozooids usually short bodied, large, rarely with a distinct abdomen.
Both apertures 4 lobed. Branchial sac large and well developed. Dorsal
lamina a plain membrane.
Thylacium normani (Alder). Bordeaux (Sharp). Ascidizooids with
body divided into thorax and abdomen. Colonies formed of individuals
projecting above the common fleshy base.
Synstyela variegata (Alder). Lihou, Pleinmont Point (Sharp). Colony
thin and incrusting. Ascidiozooids not divided into thorax and abdomen.
Completely embedded in common test.
ORDER II.—THALIACEA (Savigny). SuB-ORDER I.—CYCLOMYARIA (Krohn).
FAMILY.—DOLIOLIDZE (Keferstein).
Body free, more or less barrel-shaped ; branchial and atrial apertures
terminal and lobed. Mantle containing transverse muscle bands which
form hoops surrounding the body. Test rather slightly developed.
Doliolium denticulatum (Quoy and Gaimard). In tow nettings in open
water, but never in the bays (Sinel). The development of this form is
most interesting. The egg develops into the usual tailed larva which
gives rise to what is called a ‘‘ Nurse,’’ which is asexual. This gives
rise to three types of buds from a stem or stolon. One is nutritive and
feeds the colony ; the second sets free animals called ‘‘ Foster FKorms,”’
while the third is a sexual form which remains attached to the ‘‘ Foster
forms’’ for a period and finally develops eggs.
SUB-ORDER II.—HEMIMYARIA (Herdman).
FAMILY I.—SALPIDZ (forbes).
Body free, elongated’; branchial and atrial apertures at the opposite
ends. ‘Test well developed. Mantle with well-marked muscle bands which
do not form complete rings being wanting ventrally.
ASCIDIANS OF GUERNSEY. 209
Salpa democrataca-mucronata (?). In tow nettings, sometimes plentiful
(Sinel). This is a very interesting animal, partly on account of its
life history and partly because of its great luminosity. These Salps are
found in two forms, hence they show ‘‘alternation of generations.’’ <A
solitary form gives rise by internal budding to a tubular stem which
contains prolongations of all the principal organs of the body. This
stem becomes segmented into a series of buds, which are set free in
groups, when their development is sufficiently advanced. These sets of
animals represent the ‘‘chain’’ form in which these Salps are found.
The chains were formerly considered to be distinct species, hence the
double specific name of many. The members of the chain are sexual and
give rise to embryos which develop into simple Salps like their grand-
parents.
ORDER III.—LARVACEA (Herdman).
FAMILY.—APPENDICULARIDZE (Bronn).
Body more or less ovate, with the longcr axis antero-posterior, and
having a large appendage (tail) attached to the ventral surface. Test
periodically developed into a very large investing capsule which is thrown
off from the body after a time.
Appendicularla flabellum (?).—In tow nettings, sometimes plentiful
(Sinel). There is no alternation of generations, and no metamorphosis
in its life history.
HALLEY’S COMET AS SEEN AT GUERNSEY IN
1835 anp 1910.
BY BASIL T. ROWSWELL.
O
THE recent visit of Halley’s comet to the sun was, from a
spectacular point of view, a sore disappointment to the
inhabitants of the British Isles. For this, however, there is
every reason to believe the comet itself was in no way to
blame, but rather that it was owing to our misfortune to be
passing just at the critical time through that part of our year
when the days were almost at their longest. Comets’ tails
are very light ethereal things ; their light is easily put out by
twilight or moonlight. And it so happened that at the time
of nearest approach to us the season of twilight reigned in the
land ; there was no real night in the British Isles, while in
addition bright moonlight also interfered with successful
observation for the matter of a full week or more. Bad
weather, too, in the shape of dull, overcast skies, helped to
make matters worse on a good many nights. Further south,
and in the southern hemisphere, where much better atmospheric
conditions obtained, the comet appears to have been seen to
perfection and to have made a really brave show. I have
spoken with a gentleman who was in South America at the
time, and he said that on many nights the long shaft of light
stretching across the heavens was particularly conspicuous and
striking.
Of all the heavenly bodies known to us, Halley’s comet
is perhaps the most interesting, and that for several reasons.
First there is the host of historical associations connected
with its many appearances down the ages. Then there is also
Halley’s famous calculation of the comet’s orbit, and his bold
assertion that the bright body which he and his contemporaries
had seen in 1682 was a return of two big comets which had
crossed the sky in 1531 and 1607 respectively. And last, but
by no means least, there is his celebrated prediction that the
same body would again become visible in 1759. It did, as we
know, appear as predicted, when it was very properly named
after the distinguished astronomer, and interest in its move-
ments, past and tu come, became world-wide.
Its next apparition was in 1835, and about this visit, as
seen at Guernsey, I am able to say something, having looked
[1910.]
—
HALLEY’S COMET. PAE |
through the local papers of the time for possible paragraphs
on the subject. A search through the Star failed to bring to
light any allusion to the famous heavenly body. The Comet,
however, did refer to the phenomenon in two interesting
paragraphs which are reproduced below. They are from the
issues for October 16th and 19th respectively of that paper.
The writer, F. C. L., was Col. Frederick Corbin Lukis,
F.8.A., the celebrated archeologist, whose valuable Museum
has recently been presented to the States by his son, the late
Captain F. du Bois Lukis.
HALLEY’S COMET.
This interesting Comet, which has so long occupied the
attention of astronomers, was distinctly visible here on Saturday
evening last, the 10th instant, without the aid of the telescope.
When first observed on the above night, its situation in the
heavens was nearly north, somewhat to the eastward of the star
Alpha (Dubhe), in Ursa Major, commonly known as the Great
Bear or Charles’ Wain. Its appearance was like that of a star
of the second or third magnitude, having a pale halo or nebula
surrounding the body. At times, when the darkness of the sky
was most perceptible, there was a faint appearance of the tail in
a direction oblique to the plane of the horizon, raised about
25 degs.
The comet was visible until near midnight, although the
moon had then illumined the heavens, and as the consteilation of
Ursa Major declined to the west, it assumed a more upright
position with regard to the star Dubhe, and seemed visibly to be
approaching it.
On Sunday night, about the same hour, Halley’s comet again
became visible, but assumed a more brilliant aspect, having the
tai! more distinct to the naked eye. It had, however, altered its
position, having left the vicinity of the star Dubbe and passed
above the stars Delta and Alioth, with which it then formed an
equilateral triangle.
Some conception of its velocity may be formed, when it is
stated that in the space of twenty-four hours it had thus changed
its position one inch on a 12 inch Celestial globe.
Guernsey, 12th October, 1835. Be COa ih:
On Thursday evening, the 15th inst., about 7 o’clock, this
comet was again visible; the state of the weather, however,
prevented its being generally observed for any length of time.
Its place in the heavens was in the west, having travelled in
the space of four days at the same rate as mentioned in our last
account—about midway of a line drawn from Alpha (Lyra) to
Arcturus (Bootes) would nearly fix its situation on a globe—on
the above evening, 7.e., in or near Corona Borealis.
At the rate of velocity with which it now moves, in 24 hours
more it will intersect the line of the orbit described by the comet
of 1811 at nearly a right angle.
For the space of a few moments the tail of the comet was
distinctly seen, and extended upwards to a very considerable
distance.
Pe Orb
Guernsey, Friday, October 16, 1835.
212 HALLEY’S COMET.
As the perihelion passage, or nearest approach of the
comet to the sun, occurred on November 15th, 1835, the
above observations were made previous to the dash round
that orb. And as it is a well-known fact that comets make
their best show after, not before the event, this may account
for the evidently poor display made by the 1835 appearance.
After the perihelion passage the comet was observed only at
southern observatories. This year, on the other hand, the
body passed nearest to us after perihelion when, had other
things been equal, everything was favourable to a fine spectacle
being presented. But unfortunately, as it happened, other
things were not equal and disappointment resulted.
About the middle of May, 1836, the famous wanderer
became lost to view on its long journey to the confines of the
solar system, and for the matter of three-quarters of a century
nearly, public interest in the comet waned, to be revived once
more in 1909 because of the announcements by astronomers
that another visit was due. [Expectation at once rose to a
high pitch in many quarters as to who should be the lucky
individual to first sight and announce the approach of the
historic body. <At last, on Sunday, September 12th, the
comet declared its arrival on a photographic plate at Heidel-
berg in Germany, and Prof. Max. Woolf had the honour of
telling the world that the long expected visitor had at length
come within range of the camera.
Following this welcome announcement, the scientific
papers during the next few weeks published interesting
paragraphs giving particulars, with date, of the comet having
been photographed at one after another of the big Obser-
vatories, then of its having been seen visually by this observer
and that with instruments of gradually decreasing power.
Some of us in Guernsey courted failure by trying to emulate
the doings of observers in other places and possessed of better
instruments than our own, and for many weeks, nay months,
were forced to possess our souls in patience.
In this manner and with hope still awaiting fulfilment,
the year 1909 was gathered to its fathers and 1910 saw the
light. Still we persevered in our small way and on every
clear evening, when we could manage it, searched the critical
part of the sky for sight of the visitor. Success came at last
on Monday, January 10th, to my friend, Mr. E. Rammell, in
town, who that evening fixed the comet in his glass. Two
days later, on Wednesday, January 12th (exactly four months
after its discovery), I did the same at St. Martin’s, and saw a
very faint, ill-defined nebulosity, whitish in colour and difficult
HALLEY’S COMET. 213
to hold continuously but, all apparent shortcomings notwith-
standing, Halley’s comet at last! the comet of comets ! the
comet which heralded the fall of Jerusalem, was probably
seen by 8S. Peter, was such a conspicuous object in Europe
the year of the Conquest, and whose regular returns every
three-quarters of a century have been traced back to before
the commencement of the Christian Era. These and other
thoughts rushed to my mind as I gazed at that indistinct
patch of fluffiness in the constellation Pisces on that rough
January night, which was cold as well, for hail showers were
being borne along on a high N.W. wind, and flashes of lght-
ning from the cumuli clouds illumined the darkness at times.
My next look at Halley’s was on Saturday evening,
January 22nd, when, in spite of moonlight, it was possible to
glimpse it with the help of binoculars. This date is
memorable because the Great Daylight Comet (1910a), then
at the height of its magnificence, was first seen in all its
beauty at Guernsey. <A week later (Saturday, January 29th)
I had the good fortune to observe both comets on the same
evening at St. Martin’s. Low down in the western sky was
the unexpected stranger, both the head and long tail of which
were Clearly visible to the naked eye—it was altogether a
most striking object. After watching it disappear below the
horizon I fixed up a telescope and with a little searching
“picked up” Halley’s, then in the immediate neighbourhood
of the planet Saturn. The weather was good for observing
and it was less difficult to hold the comet in view. In
appearance it presented the same ill-defined whitish nebulosity
observed on the former occasions.
Cloudy nights, moonlight, and various engagements
prevented my getting any view of our visitor during
February, and in March it had approached so near to the sun
as to make a search for it with small instruments useless.
On the 25th of that month, Good Friday, the comet passed
behind the sun as seen from the earth, or, in other words, was
in conjunction with that luminary. This ended the first or
“evening” phase; to see the famous comet now meant very
early rising, for after “ conjunction ” it became a morning star.
The first news of its having been seen as such came from the
Cape, and ran :—‘“ Capetown, Friday (April 8): Halley’s
comet was sighted at 5.50 this morning, and was visible for
ten minutes on the eastern horizon before fading in the
daylight. . . . The comet is brighter than if was in
February and will increase in brightness daily, but is. still
invisible to the naked eye.’
214 HALLEY’S COMET.
On Saturday, April 16th, I began my search, a search
that did not immediately prove successful as the following
selected extracts from a diary will show :—
April 17 (Sunday).—Out at 4.15 a.m. and walked to the Calais Lane
with small telescope. Sky much clearer than yesterday, but
horizon lined by a deep bank of cloud. Thesky was practically
shut out to a height of from 20° to 25° in the critical part, and
the comet was not seen.
April 19 (Tuesday).—Looked out of the window at 2.30 and 4.a.m.,
but sky was seen to be again densely overcast so did not get
up.
It was on April 19th, by the way, that Mr. Collenette
delivered an instructive lecture on Halley’s Comet in the
Guille-Allés Lecture Hall to an overflowing and highly
interested audience. The next day (Wednesday, April 20th)
the comet was in perihelion—that is at its nearest approach to
the sun.
April 21 (Thursday).—Awake at 4 a.m. and was surprised to find
the weather all cleared up and Venus a fine object in the
E.8.E. Dressed quickly and went to the Calais Lane. The
dawn however was growing rapidly and the stars had faded;
it was too Jate to hope to see Halley’s.
April 23 (Saturday).—Got up just before 3 a.m., but finding on
looking out of the windows the sky to be quite overcast went
back to bed.
April 24 (Sunday).— Was again awake at 3 a.m. and looked out of
the windows, but only to see an overcast and starless sky. A
high wind was also abroad. Without thinking twice about it
went back to bed at once.
April 27 (Wednesday).—Got up at 3 a.m. and found the weather
conditions apparently very favourable. Calm was _ prevail-
ing and there was a slight white frost. The sky was clear
except for a bank of cloud some 10° deep lining the eastern
horizon and some haze above this. At 3.45 the birds burst
into song (the cuckoo included) and Venus shot up from the
mist, but I did not pick up Halley’s. Gave up the search at
4.30 and returned home sadly disappointed. ;
I learned afterwards that Mr. N. P. Stedman, of
Hauteville, caught the comet on this morning with binoculars
and had it under observation from 3.30 to 4.10 o'clock.
April 30th (Saturday).—Another fruitless quest in spite of, to all
appearances, perfect seeing conditions when I left Les
Blanches for the Calais Lane at 2.30 a.m.—bright starlight and
a clear waning moon. However, if I was unsuccessful, Mr.
Rammell was highly successful at Les Cotils, for he found
the object at 3.18 and followed it with the help of binoculars
until 3.55. Myr. Rammell says it was not visible to the naked
eye. Mr. Stedman also saw it at 4 o’clock.
At last, three days later, on Tuesday, May 3rd, success
came my way. By agreement I met Mr. Rammell at the
top of George Road at 3 a.m. Lovely starlight prevailed, the
weather was almost perfect for astronomical observations—
caine
HALLEY’S COMET. 215
and at 3.18 the celebrated comet cleared the mists of the
horizon and came into view. From that hour until 3.52
o'clock we had the visitor (as before, fluffy, ill-defined and
tailless), under observation with the help of binoculars and
telescopes. Could not say positively that the object was
visible to the naked eye.
In connection with this little see an incident
occurred which I think is worth recording. As I was walking
briskly along the road to keep my appointment with Mr.
Rammell, and while still on the St. Martin’s side of Morley
chapel, I stumbled over a cat in the dark. The little thing
was very friendly and, quite unasked or encouraged, followed
me across the Fort Road and remained with us during the
whole hour we spent at the cross roads, purring loudly and
rubbing itself against us and against the tripod of the
telescope in very evident pleasure and good fellowship.
When, after packing up our instruments at 4 o'clock, we
moved off down Colborne Road pussy came with us too, but
disappeared when Mr. Rammell and I said good-bye at the
junction of the roads near Manor House.
To our friend, Mr. John Linwood Pitts, belongs the
honour, I believe, of first seeing Halley’s comet with the
naked eye at Guernsey. This was on Sunday morning, May
8th, from his home in Les Canichers. To my disoust I
overslept myself that morning and did not wake until 5 &.M.,
altogether too late an hour to get up and go comet-hunting.
The next morning, Monday, May 9th, after some three
to four hours of very wakeful sleep, I got up at 2.30 and left
Les Blanches at 2.40 for the Calais Lane provided with
telescope and binoculars. Did not then know of Mr. Pitts’
success of the previous morning, but felt very hopeful for sky
was beautifully clear between drifting clouds, and Gamma
Pegasi, the guiding star to the comet's position, distinctly
visible. To my unbounded delight at 3 a.m. the comet came
into view from behind a cloud I had been watching closely and,
with breaks, I followed it easily with the naked eye until 3.47
and with the binoculars until 4 o’clock. I estimated the
object as of second magnitude, nebulous in appearance and
with pronounced condensation towards the lower, or sun end,
distinctly oval in shape with (in the binoculars) indications of
a short bushy tail.
The next morning while out of doors endeavouring to
get another view of the comet, I made an_ interesting
natural history observation. The cuckoo is noted for being a
lazy bird, and as regards nest-building is really so I suppose.
216 HALLEY’S COMET.
As an early riser, however, or at any rate as an early singer
in the matter of greeting the approaching dawn, I have noticed
before now that he is by no means last in the field. On this
particular morning the pleasant sound fell on my ear at 2.45
o'clock and, at 3, when owing to much haze I gave up the
search for Halley’s and went indoors again, the bird was still
calling cuckoo, cuckoo, while as yet none of the other
songsters stirred.
Because of bad weather I succeeded in getting one other
view only of the comet during its phase as a morning star.
This was on Wednesday, May 11th, when I with three other
enthusiasts obtained a few feeble telescopic glimpses between
3.15 and 3.40 o’clock from our garden at Les Blanches.
Eight days later, on Thursday, May 19th, the much
talked-about and, in some quarters, not a little dreaded
transit of the body across the sun’s face occurred. Astrono-
mers were expecting great things from the event and hoped to
see the comet projected as a dark spot against the bright
surface of the sun. Then too there was the possibility, so it
seemed, of the earth plunging through the comet’s tail, should
that lengthy appendage be a certain number of million of
miles long—when according to some authorities wonderful
things might be expected to happen froin a meteorological as
well as from an astronomical point of view. So everybody
was on the guz vive—some full of scientific curiosity, others
full of fear and trembling. And now that it is all over and
the danger past, astronomers are disputing amongst themselves
as to whether the earth did or did not pass through the
dreadful tail. Nobody appears to know. Nobody it seems is
able to affirm one way or the other and we shall probably
never know for sure. Of one thing, however, astronomers are
satisfied, viz., that the nucleus was not seen in transit at those
observatories able to watch the sun at the critical time.
At Guernsey fine clear moonlight prevailed on the
evening preceding the day of the transit, and at 9 o’clock and
for half-an-hour or so afterwards several long shafts of whitish
light were observed rising far into the sky from the sun’s
position below the horizon. These rays were seen by Mr.
Collenette, Mr. Rammell and myself, and Mr. Collenette
inclines to the opinion that they were a portion of the comet’s
tail in which the earth was then immersed. Some amongst us
were curious enough to stay up that night in the hope of
seeing something, but the only thing witnessed was a change
of weather. By 11 o’clock the fine, clear moonlight was all
at an end for cloud came up very quickly after 10 and a faint
_
HALLEY’S COMET. 217
lunar halo became visible. Rain fell after midnight and some
lightning occurred, while towards morning a thick fog
developed. To those on the watch no positive manifestations
of the presence of the tail of Halley’s comet were seen.
‘ And now began the third and last phase in this year’s
visit of the celebrated heavenly body. The comet, after the
transit, once more became an evening star as in the early
months of the year but with this difference: then it was
rushing sunwards, now, having made due obeisance to its lord
and master, it was hastening away on its long journey into the
depths of inter-planetary space. And in so doing it passed
comparatively very close to us on Friday, May 20th, the day
of the funeral of our lamented King Edward VII. ‘On that
date the comet and the earth were rushing past each other at
a distance of only 14 millions of miles.
Nothing was seen of the visitor at Guernsey that evening,
but the following day, Saturday, May 21st, a few enthusiasts
saw it. By agreement I met Mr. Rammell at Les Bemonts
at 8 p.m. and after waiting patiently for the western sky to
clear, we saw the historic body with the naked eye from 9.10
to 9.30 o'clock, when cloud again shut it out. It was a very
disappointing spectacle indeed; absolutely tailless, only a
faint yellowish-white nebulosity of about magnitude 3 ;
certainly a much fainter object than when I saw it in the
early morning of the 9th. Bright moonlight, however, had
doubtless something to say in the matter.
On the Sunday evening the comet was invisible owing
to cloud and haze, but on the Monday (May 23rd) no cloud
and very little haze interfered with observation, and hundreds
of eyes in all parts of Guernsey were turned to the west sky
in search of the visitor. At 8.45 it was just possible to see it
with the naked eye, and it remained distinctly in view until
10.30, then disappeared in the mists near the horizon. To most
people it was again a very disappointing sight for no tail was
visible, and against the twilight and moonlit sky the celebrated
comet did not show up with the brightness one had been
led to expect it would now do. Perfect weather for watching
its movements continued to prevail night after night until
Friday, the 27th, on which evening we obtained our best view
of the wanderer.
From the popular standpoint a comet is ne comet at all
unless it exhibits a tail, and in the early days of this week it
looked very much as though Halley’s would depart without
vouchsafing to us residents in the Channel Islands a view of
that important part of its make-up. But no, on the Wednes-
218 HALLEY’S COMET.
day the tail came into view at Guernsey, and although
extremely faint and only to be glimpsed at short intervals,
several of us were confident of having been able to trace
the delicate ray to a distance of about six degrees that
evening. The following night it was longer—roughly some
ten to fifteen degrees in total length—and plainly visible to
the naked eye.
On the Friday (May 27th) the comet was seen without
the help of glasses from 8.55 to 11.5 p.m., and a further and
decided increase in the brightness and length of the tail was
apparent, which stretched away from the nucleus in a gentle
slope for a matter of from twenty to twenty-five degrees, and
the nucleus (or head) was estimated as of about the second
magnitude. Projected against the west sky, immediately
below that well-known group of stars the Sickle in Leo, the
whole made a very pretty picture. The night was beautifully
starry and, the twilight having perceptibly faded, the tail was
best seen between 10 and 10.40 o'clock. After this hour it
slowly sank from view. As already stated we in Guernsey
obtained our best view of the comet on this date.
Very indifferent weather now followed, and frequently
for several nights in succession no observations were possible
because of cloudy skies. When, however, favourable condi-
tions obtained, a steady falling off in brightness both of
nucleus and tail was all too apparent.
On Friday, June 3rd, the visitor was once more seen
very clearly. With binoculars the body was “ picked up”
early as 9.15, and it became visible to the unassisted sight ‘
about 9.30. From 10 to 11 o’clock a tail from ten to twelve
degrees in length could be glimpsed at intervals with the
naked eye, but very soon afterwards the whole faded away in
the horizon mists. The sky was gemmed with stars that
night and summer lightning was occurring low down in the
east, but the strong twilight prevailing must have considerably
dimmed what would otherwise have been a much brighter
object.
This date really closes the interval during which the
comet was best observed and which began on May 23rd. It
is also the last occasion, I believe, on which the tail was seen,
while June 7th was, as far as I have been able to gather, the
last day on which the nucleus was visible to the naked eye.
With binoculars I saw it for the last time on Monday and
Tuesday, June 13th and 14th, when, because of bright
moonlight, it was only just possible to glimpse it momentarily.
Whether it would still have been visible in small instruments
se
HALLEY’S COMET. 219
with the passing of the moonlight we shall not know, for
cloudy nights succeeded the waning moon and proved as
effectual an hindrance to observation as our satellite’s light.
At some of the world’s big observatories Halley’s comet is
still (December, 1910) under observation, but to all intents
and purposes it has passed from our view, and many years
must wax and wane ere it again shines, an interesting object,
amongst the stars in our night sky.
Halley’s comet, says Knowledge for March, 1911, is
still under observation and is being assiduously followed by
Professor Barnard with the forty-inch Yerkes’ refractor. It
is now of the fourteenth magnitude, round, 32 seconds in
diameter, slightly condensed, but without a visible nucleus.
It is considerably further from the Sun than when photo-
eraphed in August [? September], 1909, and yet is two
magnitudes brighter, showing that the physical brightening at
perihelion persists for some time. Professor Barnard has
hopes of keeping it in view till the end of the year; it will
then be far outside the orbit of Jupiter, which it will cross in
April next. It will remain invisible for seventy-four years,
and will probably be detected in August, 1985, passing
perihelion about February, 1986.
OUR HEREDITARY GOVERNORS.
BY LIEUT.-COL. T. W. M. DE GUERIN.
0
WE are apt to forget that in the middle ages the government
of the Channel Islands differed much from ours at present.
For over two hundred and seventy years, from 1200 to 1471,
there was but one Governor, except in a few isolated cases,
for all the Islands, who was usually styled “ custos” keeper
or warden, and whose powers were much greater than those
of our modern Lieutenant-Governors. During the 13th cen-
tury, for instance, not only was the Warden the military
governor of the Isles, but he was also the Bailiff, the
President of our Royal Court—a combination of offices by
no means peculiar to our Islands, but also to be found in many
of the free towns, bastides or bourgades of Gascony, as well as
employed by Edward I. after the conquest of Wales. The
constables of the castles which he built to keep the Welsh
in check, being also ecz-officto the mayors of the free towns
that grew up ‘round them. As our Warden was always a
ereat baron and often held high posts at Court, and -some-
times even acted as Seneschal of Gascony, as well as Governor
of the Isles, he was frequently absent, and then his powers
were exercised by his lieutenants, two officers of his own
appointment, usually one for each island. It was only as late
as 1292 that the bailiffship of the Islands became permanently
separated from the office of Governor, William de Saint
Remy being the first Bailiff of Guernsey by Royal Patent.
Our early Governors usually held their office for an
annual sum, or farm, paid to the crown, which varied in
amount considerably from time to time. Occasionally we find
the Islands granted to prominent persons as a reward for their
services to the king on a different tenure. These enjoyed the
whole of the surplus royal revenue, after paying for the
garrisons and repairs of the royal castles in time of peace.
The Islands were held in this manner by Henry de Trubleville,
1233 to 1240, Otho de Grandison, 1275 to 1328, and Kdmund
Duke of York, 1396 to 1415. The first with title of Lord of the
Isles and the two latter with only that of Warden. Again at
other times the Channel Islands were given in appanage
to Royal Princes. First to Prince Edward, afterwards
[1910.]
HEREDITARY GOVERNORS. 224
Edward I, who held them from 1254 to 1272, and later in
1318 to Prince Edward, afterwards Edward III. The grant
to the latter was made on a false rumour of the death of Otho
de Grandison and became void on his return to England.
In the 15th century yet another mode of tenure was
adopted and the Isles were granted to Royal Princes
in fief with remainder to their heirs male. This form
of tenure in fief was a revival of the first system of
governorship adopted by King John when he gave them to
Pierre de Préaux in 1200. The princes who held the Isles —
in this manner were John, Duke of Bedford, Regent of
France, 1415-1433, and Humphry, Duke of Gloucester,
1485 to 1446. These were hereditary governors, but as
neither left any descendants the Isles fell to the crown
at their death. It is hardly correct, however, to say that the
Lordship of the Isles fell to the crown on the death of the
Duke of Gloucester, as the year previous, on the 24th
November, 1445, Henry VI. had granted the reversion of
them to Henry de Beauchamp, Duke of Warwick, who had
been his playfellow as a boy and upon whom, when he came of
age, he had heaped honour upon honour, creating him in
rapid succession Marquis, and then Duke of Warwick, as well
as King of the Isle of Wight. There is an important diffe-
rence in the Letters Patent, granting the lordship of the Isles
to the Duke of Warwick, from those of his predecessors.
Theirs contained a remainder to their heirs male, his a
remainder to his heirs, and in consequence, as we shall see, the
Isles passed in succession to two ladies of the de Beauchamp
family. Though the tomb of the Duke of Warwick at
Tewkesbury Abbey bore the proud inscription of King
of Wight, Gardsey and Jardsey, he never enjoyed the two latter
for, as we have already stated, he died a few months before
the Duke of Gloucester. On the latter’s death, in 1446, Lady
Anne de Beauchamp, the Duke of Warwick’s infant daughter,
became Lady of the Isles, and on the 24th February, 1447,
the king appointed John, Lord Beaumont, Grand Constable
of England, and Ralph Botiler, Lord Sudeley, as Governors of
the Isles, during her minority. Shortly after he gave the
Duke of Suffolk custody of her person and of all her
possessions until she came of age. The Duke then proceeded
to name a new Governor of his own, Sir William Bertram, to
look after his interests in the Isles, and obtained the king’s
approval to this appointment on the 13th November, 1448.
The king however adding a proviso “ provided the appoint-
ment did not interfere with the rights of the Lords Beaumont
F
222 HERIDITARY GOVERNORS.
and Sudeley in the Isles.” We were therefore in the posses-
sion of no less than three Governors, but unfortunately
we have no means of ascertaining how they settled their
conflicting claims. Lady Anne de Beauchamp’s tenure of the
Isles was brief, as she died in July 1449. Her heirs were her
four aunts, the daughters of Richard, Earl of Warwick,
namely: Margaret, wife of John, Earl of Shrewsbury,
Eleanor, wife of Edmund, Duke of Somerset, Elizabeth, wife
of George Neville, Lord Latimer, and Anne, wife of Richard
Neville. To these the king granted the livery of the lordship
of the Isles of Jersey and Guernsey on the 12th July, 1449.
The youngest, Anne de Beauchamp, wife of Sir Richard
Neville, was however sister of the whole blood to Henry,
Duke of Warwick, being the only other child of Richard,
Earl of Warwick, by his second wife Isabel, Countess of
Worcester, daughter and heir of Thomas le Despencer, Earl of
Gloucester. As such she was by English law nearest of kin
to the Duke and inherited the bulk of his honours and estates.
On the 23rd July, 1449, a few days after the death of the
Duke’s only daughter, Richard Neville were created Harl of
Warwick, but this patent was revoked, and on the 2nd March,
1450, he and Anne de Beauchamp, his wife, were created con-
jointly Earl and Countess of Warwick, with remainder to her
heirs, and at the same time they were granted all the honours
and possessions of Henry, Duke of Warwick, with the excep-
tion of his Marquisate and Dukedom. These Letters Patent
which have recently been published in the Calendar of Patent
Rolls of Henry VI. explain a point which puzzled Havet
when writing his list of “Seigneurs et Gardiens des Lles
Normandes,” why no Letters Patent could be discovered
creating Richard, Earl of Warwick, Lord of the Isles. As
we now see he became possessed of them in right of his wife
as heir of the Duke of Warwick. He is mentioned as Lord
of the Isles of Guernsey and Jersey in Letters Patent of the
18th July, 1451 ; but a few months after, on the 24th Sep-
tember, 1452, we find the king appointing a royal Governor
for the Isles, John Nanfan. It has been supposed that the
Earl of Warwick had already fallen into disgrace for his
adherence to the Yorkist party ; but this cannot have been
the reason as we find him appointed to various offices by the
King after this date. Further, there have recently come to
light two letters styling him Lord of the Isles of Guernsey
and Jersey during the time of John Nanfan’s governorship,
showing that though the latter was Governor, appointed pro-
bably for the defence of the Islands against the French, still
“+e
HERIDITARY GOVERNORS. 223
the Earl was not deprived of his rights as Lord of the Isles.
The first of these documents is dated the 12th February,
1453, and is a letter of the Earl’s in favour of Thomas de la
Court, of Guernsey, Seigneur of Trinity Manor, Jersey,
granting protection to him and his household from all molesta-
tions of his enemies: these enemies being his cousins the
de Saint Martins, whose ancestors had held the Manor for
centuries and who seem to have deeply resented its sale by
Thomas de Saint Martin, Seigneur of Trinity, to his brother-in-
law, the above-mentioned Thomas de la Court. The second
document is a letter of the Royal Court of Jersey of 1456,
referring to the petition of Collette de la Roque, mother of
Janequin de Saint Martin, demanding that the Vicomte be
ordered to certify to Otys Colin, Lieutenant of the Castle of
Goury, that the said Janequin was and is under the protection
and safeeuard of the King and of * Monseigneur de Warryck,
Seigneur des Iles,” as she has reason to doubt and fear the
said Otys. Otys Colin, who is here rather contemptuously
referred to as “soy disant Lieutenant” had been Lieutenant
of John Nanfan in the Isles.*
We gather from the Patent Rolls of this period some
interesting details of the history of John Nanfan. He had
seen long service during the wars with France under Henry V.
and became attached to the household of Richard, Earl of War-
wick. He was taken prisoner in France, and on his release was
appointed governor to the Earl’s infant son Henry, after-
wards Duke of Warwick. For these services he was ap-
pointed Constable of Cardiff Castle by Isabel, Countess of
Worcester, the Duke’s mother, and later forester of Glamorgan
by the Duke when he came of age, and also was awarded
a pension of £60 a year by the King. He was deprived
of his office as Governor of the Isles by Parliament, 33,
* NoTEe.—The following extract from the recently published Calendar of
Patent Rolls, Henry VI., 1452-1460, clearly shows that the Earl of Warwick was
Lord of the Isles only in right of his wife. It is dated after his attainture in 1459,
hence the reference ‘late by reason of Anne, his wife, Earl of Warwick, &c.”
Patent Rolls, 38, Henry VI., Part II, memb: 24.
March 12, 1460, Westminster. On the petition of Thomas, son and heir
of Thomas de la Court deceased, of the isle of Guernsey, showing that in
September, 1452, Thomas de Seintmartin, esquire, of the isle of Gersey, then lord
and possessor of a fee called ‘‘la Trinité” in Gersey, because he and Thomas, his
son, were taken prisoners by the king’s adversaries of France, in order to deliver
their bodies from captivity, obtained license of the officers of the place to sell the
said fee, and sold it to the said Thomas de la Court, the father, in fee for a sum of
680 scutes of gold, which Thomas de la Corte the father paid, which sale Richard
Nevill, late by reason of Anne, his wife, earl of Warwick and lord of the said Isles,
ratified by letters patent dated 18 January, 1452, but the petitioner now fears that
the sale may be reputed invalid owing to an ordinance said to have been made in
the duchy of Normandy on the king’s behalf, whereby if any man sell lands and
immoveable possessious, and within the following year and day withdraw from the
king’s obedience, such sale shall be void, and the said Thomas de Seint Martin did
so withdraw :—the king has ratified the said sale.
By p.s. &c. and for 3 mark paid in the hanaper.
224 HEREDITARY GOVERNORS.
Henry VI., which first assembled on July the 9th, 1455, when
Richard, Duke of York, was appointed Protector of the
kingdom. The Isles then reverted to the sole charge of the
Earl of Warwick. In spite of the revocation of his appoint-
ment we find John Nanfan still styled Governor-General
of the Isles in several Letters Patent of 1455 and 1456, so it is
probable that he continued to act as Governor under the Earl.
We also find him appointed by the king, on the 16th August,
1456, as collector and receiver of customs and subsidies in the
Channel Islands, and again on the 24th September, 1457, he
was re-appointed Governor-General of the Isles for a term of
ten years. How far this appointment interfered with the rights
of the Earl is most difficult to determine, owing to the disturbed
condition of affairs at this period. The dissensions between the
rival houses of York and Lancaster soon led to a renewal of
the civil war, and on the disastrous defeat of the Yorkist party
at the battle of St. Albans in 1459, the Earl of Warwick
and Edward, Earl of March (afterwards Edward IV.) fled
and after many adventures succeeded in reaching Guernsey
and from thence took refuge in Calais. Immediately after
his flight the Earl of Warwick was attainted and all
his honours and estates were declared forfeited, including
“insulam nostram de Gersey cum omnibus alts Insulis.”
John Nanfan was for the third time appointed Governor on
the 12th May, 1460. The triumph of the Lancastrians was
short-lived, as Edward IV. and the Earl of Warwick soon
returned, and the fatal battle of Towton saw the destruction
of their hopes.
Whether there is any truth in the story that Margaret
of Anjou sold the Channel Islands to Louis XI, as the
price of his support to the fallen Lancastrian cause, is un-
certain ; anyway, in the summer of 1461 the French under
Surdeval invaded the Channel Islands, captured Mont Orgueil
Castle and nearly the whole island of Jersey, and even
attacked Castle Cornet. History accuses John Nanfan, the
Lancastrian Governor, of having betrayed Mont Orgueil
Castle to the French, and the support which De Brezé,
the French Governor, received from many of the leading
families of Jersey, notably the members of the de Saint
Martin family, gives colour to the idea that there must
have been a considerable French or Lancastrian party in
that island.
Up to the present all those who have written on our
Governors have considered John Nanfan to be the last Gover-
nor of all the Channel Islands, This view is, however, now
od wall
HEREDITARY GOVERNORS. 225
proved to be incorrect as we find that they must have been
restored to Richard, Harl of Warwick, along with all the
other possessions of the House of de Beauchamp on the
12th December, 1461. Proof of this is to be found in two
charters, one of the 21st March, 1464, in which he is styled
“Comte de Warrewyk et de Salysbury Seigneur de Glamorgan
et Morgannok et des Isles de Gruernesey et de Jersey,”
granting to Thomas de la Court the forfeited lands of his
cousins John, Guille and Raulet de Saint Martin in Jersey,
which had escheated to the Earl as Lord of the Isles, on
their adherence to the king’s enemies, the French. The
other of the 12th August, 1466, is an tnspeximus and
confirmation by the Earl of a letter of sale to John Henry
of Guernsey, of a mill at the Vrangue, by William Bertram,
Governor of the Isles under the Duke of Suffolk, guardian
to Lady Anne de Beauchamp, dated the 7th May, 1449.
These letters are of great value; they not only prove that
the Earl of Warwick was restored to the lordship of the
Isles by Edward I[V., but give us some idea of the extent
of his power and privileges. They show that these hereditary
Seigneurs were absolute owners of the Isles, and were
possessed of what had been previously royal privileges and
possessions. To them fell the escheated lands of traitors
and they disposed of them to whom they would without
any reference to the crown, they sold and confirmed the
sale of a royal mill as their own private property, and
further, as we have seen, they issued letters of Protection
under their own seal to people of the Isles and ordered
their officials to take cognisance of them as if they were
royal personages.
There is not the slightest reason to suppose that Richard,
Earl of Warwick, was not in possession of the Isles at the
time of his death at the battle of Barnet, 1471. The fact
that a Jerseyman, Geoffrey Walsh, Seigneur of Handois,
who was Captain of Castle Cornet in 1456, and who is
said to have been Captain or Lieutenant of Guernsey in
1468, was killed in the same battle fighting under the Earl,
tends to show that he was still possessed of them.
What exactly happened concerning the government of
the Channel Islands on the death of the Karl of Warwick
is uncertain. Richard Harliston, who had recaptured Mont
Orgueil Castle in 1468, was certainly acting as Captain
and Governor of Jersey in December, 1474, when he ordered
Thomas de la Court, son of the Thomas last mentioned,
to be given possession of Trinity Manor and the rest of
226 HERIDITARY GOVERNORS.
his father’s ‘lands in Jersey, on account of his father’s
services at the siege of Mont Orgueil. MHarliston’s exact
position is not clear, as in the Gascon Rolls, 13th January,
1477, he is officially appointed Captain and Governor of
Jersey “ because he had recovered the castle from the king’s
enemies ”—a phrase one might expect to find in an original
grant but would hardly look for in an extension of office.
As far as Guernsey is concerned we seem to have had no
Governor from the time of the death of the Earl of Warwick
until 4th November, 1477, when William de Courteney was
appointed Captain.
On this point it must be noted that George, Duke of
Clarence, who had married Isabel, eldest daughter of the
Earl of Warwick, was advanced to all the titles and dignities
of the said Earl on 25th March, 1472. Further that he
was attainted and died in the Tower in the year 1477,
when we find the first Letters Patent appointing separate
Governors for both Guernsey and Jersey. Did he also
hold the lordship of the Isles? This is a point awaiting
solution.
In 1487 we get the last glimpse of Lady Anne de
Beauchamp, Countess of Warwick and Lady of the Isles.
The astute Henry VII. declaring that it was “abhorrent to
God and man that children should supplant their parents
and deprive them of their inheritance,” brought the aged
Countess from the convent where she had taken refuge,
after many vicissitudes subsequent to her husband’s death,
and with great pomp restored her to possession of all her
titles and manors, including the lordship of the Channel
Islands. A few days later, on the 3rd December, 1487,
she renounced in favour of the king all her inheritance
including “ the islands and lordship of Jernesey and Guernesey
and the castles and manors of Gurry, Cornet, Serk, Erme,
and Aureney, in the islands aforesaid.” And so the craftiest
of the Tudor monarchs robbed the widowed Countess and
her grandson, the last male heir of the White Rose, in a
strictly legal manner.
io
THE RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY FOR THE
YEAR 1910.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
0
A REFERENCE to last year’s paper on the rainfall will
explain my reasons for believing in advance that 1910 would
be wet. The event has justified; the foreeast for 1919
has proved to be nearly 10 inches in excess of the average
and the largest annual total since 1882. With these figures
before us we are justified in anticipating a smaller rainfall
for 1911, probably not lower than the average.
Following the sequence of dry and wet years a little
further I have prepared a table (5) in which I have collected
the 10 years of lowest rainfall in the 68 years’ records, and I
find that seven out of the ten were succeeded by two years of
successively greater totals. In the three exceptions the first
succeeding year is one of greater rainfall.
It is possible that we have two or more short periods
overlapping and confusing each other, which may be dis-
entangled later. It is worthy of note that the means of these
years vary between the minimum and Ist year about 10 inches,
then the difference between the Ist and 2nd year falls to
3 inches. If we consider the 7 years which agree we find
that the rise from minimum to maximum is roughly 8 inches
in each successive year.
The only very dry month in 1910 was September, which
was 2°65 inches below its average. On the other hand,
January, February, October and November were very wet,
the last month being over 6 inches in excess of its average
and proved to be the wettest November we have on record.
There were several very wet periods, notably one at
the end of the year involving the last 83 days, out of which
74 were wet. Not only did it rain day after day, but
heavy falls were experienced in October and November;
three days in October gave 3°8 inches and three days in
November gave 3:1 inches (see Table 3). If we exclude the
rainfall of these 6 days we remove more than 1-7th of the
total for the year.
[1910.]
228 RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
As regards the distribution of rainfall over the year
Table I shows that January and February contributed 237,
October, November and December over 48°/., leaving only
29°/., for the remaining seven months. |
The distribution of rain over the whole island is shown
in Table 2. There are, owing to the somewhat partial dis-
tribution of the heaviest falls, differences which throw some
of the stations a little out of their former proportionate
values. Tor instance, Hautnez collected only 85°/., Grange
85°], and L’Ancresse 79°/, of the Brooklyn totals, whereas
last year their proportions were 90°/,, 95°/, and 96°/.. | In
the case of L’Ancresse the moving of the gauge from Mr.
Hocart’s at Les Mielles to Fort Doyle (Mr. E. O. Catford)
may possibly account for a part of the loss. In the other
cases the gauges have not been moved.
As regards wet days this year has given as many as
the previous wettest and the number, 232, exceeds the average
by 51. The stations vary among themselves as much as
62 days (181 to 243).
In Table 7 I have collected the results of the measure-
ments in Alderney and Sark (as kindly provided by Mr.
Rowswell) and I compare them with the falls on the roof
of the Library, where the fall for the year has been
2°39 inches less than at St. Martin’s Road.
A month’s total (October) is missing from the Alderney
returns and the gap has been filled by crediting the island
with 7 inches for that month, which seems to be a consistent
quantity, but of course this is done merely to be able to use
the returns of the other months and must not be taken as
correct.
229
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
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230
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE II,
DISTRIBUTION OF RAINFALL OVER THE ISLAND 1910.
1910.
August
September ....
October
The Year..;.-
Comparisons ..
Wet Day
Observers
South & South East. East.
ae) Et
: Sie ots
eg (Se, & | #8) Fz
8 |2e8 |e oma ee
ae | ne ¢ ee rie
OA 2 eee ee ale
x SS
1 2 3 4 5
in. in. in. in. in.
5-54 | o12 | 4°49 | 5-98 | 5°45
5°00 | 4:80) 4°12) 4.94, | 5-45
2°03: | >1-93> |) 1:67 | 1-93 191-88
1°39) T:460)- 1:38.43) eat | 134
2°30 | 2°22 | 2°06 | 9-90 | 2-13
1°96 | 1°99 | 2°30 | 1:96 | 2°18
2°83. | 2°50) | 2°43 | 2:69 | 2°73
2°33 | Qeal | 2:29 =| 9-=98 | 2-96
0°36 | 6°35 | 0°35 | 0°39 | 0°37
15D) \ tro9e) (6241 127-59") 7e6s
10°75, | 11°18 | 10°36 | 10:20 | 10°29
4:10 | 4°14 | 3°59 | 3°89 | 3°94
46-17 [45°54 40-36 | 40-32 | 45-72
100 96 85 85 99
232 243 225 215 221
Sia lok 3
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D a D Fe =
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4°79 | 4°63
138 awa
1°79 | 1°58
2°02 | 1°99
2°09 | 2°03
2°60 | 2°48
2°03 | 2°96
0°24 | 0°34
6:29" "6562,
8°80 | 10°53
3°89 | 3°89
89 93
224 223
8
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mH | §
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East. | Island
Ss | a
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4°47 | 4°78
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1°67 | 2°08
1:90 | 2°05
24d | (eT
1°90 | 2°20
0°14 | 0°31
6°70 | 7°06
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3°65 | 3°88
94
79
181 | 220
3
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231
GUERNSEY.
RAINFALL OF
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232
TABLE IV.
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
AVERAGE ANNUAL VALUE OF RAINFALL.
The Year No. of | Dry or Rainfall
included. Years. Wet. of Year.
Inches.
PYeVIOUS sa... 58 — —
WER Gansngao as 59 Very Dry 27:97
DOOR vcr ere eee 60 Dry. 33°98
POS Se cree 61 Wet. 40°88
1904 6 ccm 62 Wet. 37°72
1905» ee te 63 Dry. 34°12
EGOGS Rivak oe eee 64. Dry. 33 43
USOT oO van aeecea: 65 Dry. 34:00
DOS Se eats arr 2 66 Very Dry 26°22
L909” Cees heteton 2 67 Dry. 34°00
AGLO ie whe o ces 68 Wet 46°16
Whole period of
10 years...... = Dry. 34°84
TABLE V.
Average Effect of
of full each year on
Period. Average.
Inches. Inches.
36°62 —
36°54 —0°08
36°52 —0°02
36°62 -+- 0°10
36°62 —
36°59 —0°03
36°46 —0°13
36°50 -+- 0°04
36°32 —0°18
36°29 —0°03
36.51 -+- 0°22
— 011 —
YEARS OF MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM RAINFALL WITH THE
TWO SUCCEEDING YEARS.
Yeargot Minimum || _Teargot Medium | Years of Mazina
3 following Minimum. Minimum.
|
Year. | Inches. Year. Inckes. Year. Inches.
1844 | 27°6 1845 Ba°3 1846 42°5
1847 | 29°2 1848 48:0 1849 36°4
1851 | 29°3 1852 49°1 1853 34°9
1854 29°9 1855 30°4 1856 34°3
1858 25:0 1859 43°4. 1860 -48°0
1864 32°6 1865 43°3 1866 44°4
1870 2020 1871 36°2 1872 56°9
1887 28-7 1888 3874 1889 Boe
1901 27°9 1902 33°9 1903 40°9
1908 26°2 1909 34°0 1910 46:2
10 | Mean 10 Mean 10 Mean
Years. | 28:3 Years. 38-9 Years. 41°8
7 | Mean a Mean a Mean
Years. 28°0 Years. 36°3 Years. 44°7
|
The seven years’ totals do not include the lines beginning with the
years 1847, 1851 and 1887.
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE VI.
PREVIOUS YEARS OF LOWEST RAINFALL WITH THE 5 YEARS
BEFORE AND AFTER THE MINIMA.
233
In.
26
1853
34°98
1854 | 1855 | 1856
99:29 30°42 | 30°36
1857
31 90
1858
1859 | 1860
43°41
1861
31°22
1862
32°50
1863
34°47
In.
56
1865 | 1866 | 1867
1868
34°76
1869
32-99
1871 | 1872
56°96
1873
37°72
1874
35°38
1875
36°28
1903
1904
1910
46°16
234
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE VII.
RAINFALL OF ALDERNEY AND SARK, 1910.
Compared with the Elevated Gauge on the Guille-Allés Library,
|
Communicated by Mr. B. Rowswell.
Inches.
G. & A. Library,
by
Mr. B. Rowswell.
AON NH NYRR CN
Ki od DONDE DED
MOO HOO OR WD
WwW oOo
forge}
a
43°77
Wet Days.
S BB
is! D2 a
a |
24 24 24
26 25 24
7 6 9
13 11 13
16 19 20
1] 13 11
13 16 15
15 16 17
6 5 5
20°; 18 20
21 27 28
20 23 23
192 | 203 | 209
Rainfall.
my
S BS
Months. B a : =
pou Bo
op | 2 3
<q 2 &
Ss
JANUALYs 7.5) ek 4°40 3°94
February ..5.°. 4°73 3°97
Marches cian: 2°98 1°60
Aprils eco 1°64 0°97
MAY ace a apee@ coins 2:29 1:97
SUMNEs 5 Feit 1 64 1°84
DULY Gee Moor VIDS 2°41
AUSUStRo emer 2°10 2°00
September .... 0°20 0°29
October ...... 7°00 P 709
November .... 8°79 10°15
December...... 3°85 Pam on
Totaloa aww car 41°99 39°04
SUNSHINE IN GUERNSEY.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
0
THE year has again proved to be a year of small sunshine,
the total being 138 hours less than the average. There have
been, in the 17 years during which sunshine has been regis-
tered in the island, four only with smaller totals.
We now have on record
5 years with totals under 1,800 hours.
ie ae » of from 1,800 to 1,900 hours.
Sea <3 s » 1,900 to 2,000 hours.
5 i OVeLe2. 000 hours.
The extremes of the whole period are shown in Table 2
The range in the annual totals being 491 hours. We thus
know, although the period is short, “that our sunshine can
vary from year to year as much as 500 hours.
The months of July and August narrowly escaped being
records of low sunshine, July being 38 hours and August
6 hours only in excess of the previous lowest figures.
The coldness and sunless summer is once more somewhat
remarkable, for while the winter months January, February,
March and December were above their averages, April to
September inclusive were deficient in sunshine.
The deficit of these summer months amounted to 177
hours, equal indeed to the whole sunshine of September this
year, and July which should have contributed 270 hours gave
practically 80 less. August followed with a loss of 5U hours.
On the other hand March gave a surplus of 45 hours.
Last year July was 47 hours in deficit, that is in two
years we have a total of 127 hours out of the 680 due, that is
a mean annual loss during those two years of 63, on an
average of 340 hours.
Going backward I find that the reduction of the average
in July is considerable, and to show that I have prepared a
new table (3) comparing the values of the averages of this
and the other summer months,
The loss here shown does not exist in the winter months
the averages of which have either remained stationary or
have increased.
This absence of sunshine is serious, but we may comfort
ourselves by believing that the loss will be made up and that
warm and favourable summers will in due order succeed.
[1910 ]
236 SUNSHINE GF GUERNSEY.
I consider that the columns in Table I of the percentage
of the year’s total of each month and the value of the day in
each month are not without interest. The falling off is well
shown by the fact, giving July for instance, of the day in that
month yielding a mean value of 6°1 hrs. against 8°7 in the
averages, and further that 1910 gave a value for the day
TABLE I.
DURATION OF SUNSHINE AND
Campbell-Stokes -
SUNSHINE.
Monthly Totals. Hours. | P once the ie each
1910.
hae fae : Hours.
gue | ae S | # F
1910. 9,6 g 8 1910. x @8 = @
B< ) Am q | Am “| é
=“
January ....| 60°9 58°2 82°5 23 22 31 19 | 18
February ..| 88°4 85:1 118°9 32 30 42 30 | 3:0
March...... | 194°0 148°7 228°4 53 40 62 6:2 4°8
April’ oc ieee 189-0 195°2 260°8 46 AT 63 63 | 65
May ccc Sue Aly (oe 248°5 339°4 46 52 IZ 70 | 8:2
PUNE! so dials 240°8 247°5 314°4 50 51 65 8-0 9°0
JQLYS. Sesao se 190°5 269°5 339°9 39 55 70 6'1 8°7
August ....| 192°1 242°2 3256 43 55 73 6°2 7°8
September..| 169°2 | 185°7 | 269-4 45 49 72 56 | 3:8
October ....| 119°7 115°4 1545 36 34 46 3°8 3°7
November ..| 58:4 69°8 113°9 21 25 41 19 23
December ..| 52°3 45°4 Toi 19 17 30 17 1°4
The Year .. 1173°0 | 1911°0 | 22150 39 | 43 | 50 4:8 | 5:2
SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY. 234
over the whole year of 4°8hrs., when it should have been
5°2 hrs.
It will be noted that the sunless days, which in the
averages number 45, have this year mounted up to the
relatively high figure of 57. Of course a_ considerable
advance in the cloud column was to be expected, and is found
as 6°4 instead of 5:3 (Scale 0 to 10).
TABLE I.
PREVALENCE OF CLOUD.
Recording Instrument.
SUNSHINE. Sunniest Days.
Sunless
Difference ‘ aks j
eee a vohthe 1910. E Scale 0 to 10.
Colhimtis. ear’s Total. a
Hours. 1910. g 1910. g Hours.| Date.| 4 1910. £
> > >
~ $ Hours. <
-+- 2°7 3°6 3°3 13 10 76 | 30th SEZ, 76 6°6
+ 3:3 4°9 4-4 5 6 6°6 8th Si 6°7 6°2
++ 45°3 teh? TT 2 3 10°9 | 28th | 11°8 6°8 5°D
— 6:2 10°7 | 10°2 3 1 12°07) 26th) 438 6:1 4°8
—20°8 1931 -13"2 0 it 14°7*| 24th | 14°5 671 Ad
— 73 13°5 | 12°9 2 1 15°1 3rd | 15°6 61 4°8
—79°0 10°7 | 14°71 5 0 14:2 4th | 15:0 6°6 4°6
—50°1 10°8 | 12°6 1 1 12°3 | 10th | 14°4 | 6°5 4°5
—14°5 9°5 wer) 2 1 11°8 8th | 12°4 | 5°5 4°6
-+- 4:3 6°7 6°0 5 4 91 | 14th | 10°8 4°] 5°9
—11°4 3°2 3°6 8 | 61 2nd 8°8 Ts 6°4
-+- 6°9 2°9 2°3 11 11 5° | 14th Wes 7:3 5°8
—138:°0 100 | 100 57 | 46 15°1 | June | 15°6 6°4 5°3
* New Record.
SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY,
238
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SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE ITI.
THE REDUCTION IN HOURS OF SUNSHINE DURING THE LAST
SEVEN YEARS OF THE SUMMER MONTHS.
Period.
Averages for
TE Yeatsevis.ss..
May.
261
253
207
251
246
244
250
248
13
June.
270
258
253
254
250
249
248
247
33
239
Hours of Sunshine.
Averages,
July.
287
283
282
280
280
217
274.
269
18
August.
September
191
190
186
189
189
188
187
186
NOTES ON THE RAINFALL AT SARK AND
ALDERNEY DURING THE YEAR 1910.*
BY BASIL T. ROWSWELL.
0)
THE year 1910 will stand out in the annals of local Meteo-
rology as one of excessive rainfall. As far as my own
Station at Les Blanches in this island (Guernsey) is con-
cerned the total measurement for the twelve months, viz.,
45°54 in., exceeded the average of the 10 years, 1894-1903, by
no less than 11°59 in. Of the 17 years during which
rainfall observations have been taken at Les Blanches, 1910
was by 7°34 in. the wettest year of the series, and its total
exceeds that of 1908 (24°33 in.), the driest of the seven-
teen, by 21:21 in. October with 7°59 in. of rain and
November with 11°13 in. (aggregate 18°72 in.) together
represent no less than 55 per cent. of the year’s average
total. Five one-inch rainfalls were measured at Les Blanches
during October and November, the heaviest downpour of
the year, 1°53 in., occurring on October 13th. Only one
really dry month was experienced, September, the full
rainfall of which was but 0°35 in.
In writing of 1910 as having been excessively wet, one
should do so guardedly. The year began with two very
wet months, but these were followed by a long interval of
just ordinary rainfall. As a matter of fact there was nothing
to point to the year being one of extraordinary rainfall
until the advent of November when, however, it became
abundantly clear that the accumulated fall for the twelve
months would certainly be an unusually heavy one and
that 1910 would finish up with a “grand total” unknown
at Guernsey for very many years.
Incidental reference has been made to the great rainfall
shortage of 1908. This was followed in 1909 by a further,
if much smaller, loss, but together the deficiency for the
two years reached the big figure of 11°25in. This alarming
drought, however, was more than wiped out by the 11°59 in.
*The incidental references in these Notes to the Rainfall Station at Les
Blanches are included merely for the sake of comparing the Sark and Alderney
figures with those at a Guernsey Station. B.T.R.
[1910.]
RAINFALL AT SARK AND ALDERNEY. 241
excess in the 1910 rainfall. There is every reason to believe
that excesses and deficiences of rainfall always balance
themselves in time. Sooner or later, no matter how great
the departure from the normal may be, a restoration to par
occurs.
The year 1910 began with a distribution of atmospheric
pressure which had in it great possibilities for the making
of fine weather in the Channel Islands; everything seemed
to point to the likely development of a cold snap. But it
never came off, for after a week of wavering uncertainty
the tide turned in the direction of “unsettled,” which as
the days advanced became more pronounced in every respect
and, in the end, made the month one of marked cyclonic
activity, variable temperature and heavy rainfalls.
In all the islands very little rain fell until the 11th
when the first big fall of the year occurred, and a stiff
gale with heavy thunderstorm was reported from Alderney.
Lightning and thunder also occurred at Guernsey between
6 and 7 p.m. that day. Very heavy rain again fell on
Sunday, the 23rd, in connection with the passage of a
deep Atlantic disturbance. The measurements were: Sark,
0°67 in.; Alderney, 0°83 in. ; (Guernsey (Les Blanches),
0°83 in.
From Guernsey on Wednesday, the 26th, the ad-
jacent French coast and Alderney were observed to be
thickly covered with snow. In confirmation Mr. Picot’s
weekly report stated that a heavy fall of snow had been
experienced at Alderney during the night from the 25th
to the 26th. On the 26th itself an interesting peculiarity
in rainfall was noted, for while Capt. Henry at Sark reported
a perfectly dry day, and 0:01 in. only of rain fell at Guernsey
(Les Blanches), a “steady snowfall” yielding 0°35 in. of
water in the gauge, occurred at Alderney during the “ after-
noon and evening.” Roughly from four to five inches of
snow are represented by Mr. Picot’s measurement given
above. On Saturday evening, January 29th, the Great
Daylight Comet (1910a) was seen at Alderney; it was
also seen at Gruernsey the same day.
February proved mild but exceedingly unsettled. Both
at Sark and Alderney it was the wettest February of the
five years 1906-1910; at Les Blanches it was the wettest
month of the name since 1900. Out of the 28 days rain
was measured on 25 at Sark, 26 at Alderney and 27 at
Les Blanches. Lightning occurred at Alderney on the 7th,
“thunder and lightning” during the evening of the 20th,
242 RAINFALL AT SARK AND ALDERNEY.
and ‘thunder and hail” on the night of the 23rd. Another
peculiarity in the distribution of the rainfall was noted on
the 21st for while long showers, giving 0°27 in. at Guernsey
(Les Blanches), and 0°28 in. at Sark, fell in this part of
the Bailiwick, Alderney escaped with a paltry 0°01 in.
With the advent of March much drier weather set in
and nearly the whole of the month’s rainfall occurred in
the second week. On the 11th a downpour amounting to
three quarters of an inch roughly, fell in the three islands.
Two days before this date Alderney had been deluged with
a fall amounting to 0°82 in., while Les Blanches and Sark
received respectively 0°42 and 0:41 in. only. Different in
amount, however, as the rainfalls were on the 9th, a much
greater difference was noted on the 12th, and on this occasion
again Alderney came in for the bigger quantity. Here the
measurement was 1°03 in. and Mr. Picot reported “thunder,
lightning, rain extraordinary.” At Guernsey and Sark where,
by the way, no electrical disturbance was experienced but
a dull sunless day the rainfall totalled 0°20 in. at Les Blanches
and 0°12 in. at Sark! In the six days ending March 12th
Alderney received 2°68 in. of rain, Guernsey (Les Blanches)
1°58 in., and Sark 1:39 in. From the 19th to the end of
the month the weather was absolutely dry at all the
stations. The dry interval came to an end at Guernsey
and Alderney on the 2nd of April and at Sark on the 3rd.
This was the longest rainless spell of the whole year in
the islands. On April 4th when 0:05 in. of rain fell at
Guernsey (Les Blanches) Sark had 0:14 in. and Alderney
as much as 0°37 in. April was more or less an unsettled
period all through, but with deficient rainfall. At Sark,
where Capt. Henry measured a total of less than one inch,
it was the driest of the last five Aprils, but at Alderney
the month was drier in 1906.
May was an unsettled month for the time of year. Rain
fell almost daily during the first three weeks, but the fourth
week was fine and absolutely dry both at Sark and Alderney.
This is the week during which Halley’s comet was best seen in
the islands. Smart hail showers fell at Alderney and
Guernsey on the 7th and 8th, and on the 14th Alderney
experienced the ‘tail-end rain” of a heavy thunderstorm
raging in the Channel, north of that island, at 8 pm. At Le
Huret, Mr. Picot’s station, the gauge collected 0°08 in. only of
water.
In the early part of June two severe thunderstorms
visited the Bailiwick, the first, which, (at Guernsey) com-
RAINFALL AT SARK AND ALDERNEY’ 243
menced late in the evening of Monday the 6th and prevailed
until well into the morning of the 7th, appears to have been
heaviest in this island, 0°70 in. of rain falling at Les Blanches
and as much as 0°97in. at Les Héches, St. Peter’s-in-the
Wood. At Sark, Capt. Henry measured 0.49 in. only as a
result of the storm, while Alderney escaped with a paltry
0°03 in. There the disturbance must have been of the slightest
for Mr. Picot’s description of the day’s weather was merely
“thunder and lightning at night.” Two days later, however
(on the 8th) when the second thunderstorm occurred Alderney
abundantly made up for what it had lost on the earlier
occasion for the observer’s note ran: “ severe thunderstorm,
8.30 p.m., tropical downpour ;” and the tropical downpour
was nothing less than 1:0Sin. At Sark only 0°45 in. of
rain fell in the storm and at Les Blanches still less, viz. :
0°32in. In another part of Guernsey (1 Ancresse) 0°67 in.
was measured. At Guernsey and Sark, by the way, the
thunderstorm prevailed during the afternoon, but at Alderney
in the evening.
On the 27th of June, by a curious coincidence, 0°05 in.
of rain fell in the three islands, but on the 29th while 0°08 in.
only fell at Alderney, Sark had 0°26 in. and Guernsey (Les
Blanches) 0°32in. Very great differences in rainfall are noted
from time to time in the Channel Islands and that quite apart
from a thundery state of the weather when, as is well known,
places but a short distance apart will frequently show a
marked diversity of rainfall. For instance, on the 9th of
June no less than 1°32 in. fell at St. Aubin’s, Jersey, against
O°31lin. at Les Blanches, 0°33in. at Sark and 0°14in. at
Alderney.
July was an abnormally cold month for the time of year
and it proved a wet period as well. Both at Sark and
Alderney it was by a long way the wettest July of the
five years 1906-1910, and the total measurement in each
island (see Table) was practically the same. A week and two
days of absolutely dry weather was experienced beginning on
the 6th, but from the 15th onwards continuously wet and
rough conditions prevailed, rain falling almost daily and
frequently heavily.
The unseasonable weather of the last half of July spread
into August which ran its course to the tune of deficient
sunshine, low temperature and frequent showers. Again
in both of the smaller islands it was the wettest month of the
name since rainfall observations were commenced in 1906. A
thunderstorm occurred during the evening of Sunday the 14th,
244 RAINFALL AT SARK AND ALDERNEY.
both at Alderney and Guernsey. As far as Guernsey is
concerned the storm was a slight one; in each island the
rainfall was the same, viz. : 0°06 in.
The next month, September, was the driest of the twelve,
and more than that. The figures show it in fact to have been
to date the driest month on record (since January, 1906) at
both Sark and Alderney. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) it
was with May, 1905, the driest month since May, 1896. The
dry weather notwithstanding there was no drought in the
technical acceptance of the term for a little rain fell at all the
stations on the 14th, and more heavily at Sark and Guernsey
on the 15th. Beginning on the 16th, however, a run of twelve
dry days was enjoyed everywhere.
In October a most regrettable break in the records
occurred at Alderney. From the 2nd to the 29th inclusive no
measurements of rainfall were made at Le Huret. The
interruption in the observations is all the more to be regretted,
occurring as it did at a time of unusually heavy rainfall
when a comparison of the daily falls at this Station with
those at Sark and Guernsey would have been particularly
interesting. Fortunately, however, the observations were
resumed before the beginning of November—a month, as
far at any rate as Guernsey is concerned, of almost unpre-
cedented rainfall.
The change from dry to wet—a change destined to last to
the end of the year—developed suddenly on October 10th and
the weather at once became excessively unsettled. Already on
the 11th the Sark gauge collected 1:11. in. of rain, and
two days later (Thursday, the 13th), when also a great
N.E. gale raged, the amount was no less than 1°84 in. As
a daily fall this latter is the biggest reported either
from Sark or Alderney in the five years 1906-1910. At
Guernsey (Les Blanches) 1°23 in. fell on the 11th, and 1°53 in,
on the 13th. October at Sark was to-date a record for
wetness (7°09 in.) and it is rather curious that it immediately
followed the month holding the record for drought, viz.,
September with 0°29 in. only of rain. This is for the five
year period, 1906-1910.
Unusually wet as October proved itself it was nothing
compared with the torrential downpours that deluged the
Bailiwick throughout November. The grand total for
November, in Guernsey and Sark at any rate, is one that
will take a lot of beating. At Alderney the figure is much
lower but appears to be in agreement with observations
taken at Totland Bay in the Isle of Wight and at other
RAINFALL AT SARK AND ALDERNEY. Q45
places on the south coast of Hngland all of which show
a much smaller November rainfall than was experienced at
Guernsey and Jersey. The reduction in the November
rainfall northward of Guernsey is well shown in the following
table which gives the totals for October and November at
the several places named. The October figures are included
merely on account of that month having been (though on a
smaller scale) a very wet period also.
1910. Jersey. Guernsey. Sark. Alderney. Wight
St. Aubin’s. Les Blanches. Totland.
in. in. in. in. in.
October ...:...... Devoe ao, 09) ioe ene OW U6)
November ...... Ossie eel ere PO 2. 18779 cA,
Totals .....: MOSS LO ke ee ces NOY
HEAVIEST DAILY RAINFALL IN NOVEMBER.
1910. Jersey. Guernsey. Sark. Alderney. Wight.
: in. in. mn. in. in.
WNewembers. 1°21 0c 1:43/2.. 1:07 ... t4 ... O82
23rd 16th 16th 23rd 30th
Jersey (St. Aubin’s) had two one-inch rainfalls during
November; Guernsey (Les Blanches), two; Sark, three ;
Alderney, two; Isle of Wight (Totland), none.
This month, probably more than any other in the five
year period (1906-1910) covered by the observations, was
rich in differences of daily rainfall over the Bailiwick. Some
of the more striking of these differences are tabulated below :
Sark. Alderney. Guernsey.
Les Blanches.
in. in. in:
November 3rd............ OGG aes O22 8) ceak 0°65
¥ Oe Wt se ceaea cs OSM eke se. ORO) aes 0°49
a Abe eee O08) uses ON ee eas. 0°65
" NES ENG oes ches Os Bure coe: — devece 0°35
Es GO thes cease IAG Ip toe ee Ore vec css 1°43
UG was tice sa esie O80: Soc. LOU Aese 1:00
ip DAT eater es TOO nose OP 9G esaces 0°69
= PAP el bese etree ee 0 il als ee O63) 25aee: 0°17
a DO tee. oe Monn 0°64. 3.8% OG esos 0°78
On the evening of Saturday, November 5th, when
thunder and lightning occurred here, Mr. Picot reported
“thunder, evening,” at Alderney. The following day his
report ran: “S.W. gale, rain, thunder, lightning,” and for
the 7th: “thunder, evening, and rain.” At Guernsey thunder
H
246 RAINFALL AT SARK AND ALDERNEY.
and lightning was noted during the evening of the 7th, but
none occurred on the 6th. <A terrific thunderstorm with
much hail (the worst visitation of the kind at Guernsey
for some years) prevailed during the early evening of Tuesday,
November 15th. Alderney not only escaped this electrical
disturbance altogether, but the day was reported as quite
dry in that island.
December brought no improvement in the weather which
continued very unsettled and rainy almost to the end. The
passing depressions deposited much less rain than had been
the case in October and November, but the type of at-
mospheric pressure remained persistently cyclonic, westerly
and mild. The Table shows that the normal condition of
things was reverted to again as regards distribution of
rainfall, Alderney getting the larger and Sark the smaller
amount.
The very unfortunate break in the continuity of the
observations at Alderney in October leaves blanks in this
paper which it is impossible to fill, as for instance the total
of rainfall for the year in that island, the number of rain
days and other particulars. And for the same reason there
can be no comparison of the year as a whole in the two
islands. This much, however, can be gathered from the
observations: that Sark continues to hold its own as the
driest of the three islands, and that Alderney takes the
middle position, leaving Guernsey to head the list as the
place of heaviest rainfall.
I cannot conclude these fragmentary remarks without
once more acknowledging my indebtedness to Capt. Henry,
of La Vallée du Creux, Sark, and to Mr. W. J. Picot,
of Le Huret, Alderney, who have now for five years so
devotedly interested themselves in the rainfall of their
respective island and sent me regularly weekly returns of
the observations taken.
ABSOLUTE DROUGHTS IN 1910.
An Absolute Drought, as defined in British Rainfall,
is a “period of more than 14 consecutive days, no one of
which is a rain day.”
Sark.
March 19 to April 3 = 16 days.
Alderney.
March 18 to April P= iG days.
RAINFALL AT SARK AND ALDERNEY. 247
PARTIAL DROUGHTS IN 1910.
A Partial Drought, as defined in British Rainfall, is a
“period of more than 28 consecutive days, the mean rainfall
of which does not exceed ‘01 in. per day.”
Sark.
August 31 to September 30 = 31 days with a total
of 0°31in. of rain which fell on 6 days.
Alderney.
August 29 to September 30 = 33 days with a total
of 0°33 in. of rain which fell on 7 days.
LONGEST RAIN SPELL IN 1910.
Inclusive dates giving the longest unbroken succession
of rain days for the year.
Sark.
January 8 to 21 = 14 days with a total of 2°55 in. of
rain.
INCH RAINFALLS IN 1910.
These have been tabulated on account of their unusually
large number.
Sark. Alderney. Guernsey.
; (Probably incomplete. ) Les Blanches.
Oct. 11...1°11 in. March 12...1°03 in. Oct; 11...1-23n:
» 13...1°84in. June 8...1-08in. | 13..1-53 im.
Nov. 16...1°07 in. Nov. 23...1°:14 in. see Ole l Oda:
eo 242..1:000n. 3 30.2 L-O2 1m. Nov. 16...1°48 in.
get 302571004: a5 24...0°99 in. ae 2 oeeel OO ine
In 1906 and also in 1907 Sark registered one one-inch
rainfall, none were recorded in 1908, but two in 1909. At
Alderney none were registered in 1906, two each in 1907 and
1909 and one in 1908. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) the
number and distribution of one-inch rainfalls for the four
years 1906-1909 is exactly the same as for Sark.
[See next page for the Rainfall Table. ]
248
RAINFALL AT
SARK AND ALDERNEY.
SARK AND ALDERNEY RAINFALL, 1910.
Months.
August ...e..
September
October
November
December
The Year
Totals for 1909 ..
1908
99
9
9?
1907 ..
1906 ..
Monthly
Totals.
~
S
Md 5
je
o2) <q
in. ie
| o'944| 4240
eal or 9 ete
..| 1°60 | 2°98
sel O:9F (| 2264
Stl ele OR | eae
eel kee i64:
wall sora A| e2esd:
val 2500 1) .2et0
..| 0°29 | 0°20
..| 7°09 ?
;.(10°15_| 8°79
SA ech aot
. (09°04 iF
26°13 |32°99
.(18°51 |24°02
26°15 | 28°84
26°07 |28°63
Rain
Days.
Siw a Alderney.
+]
oo
Co kt Od
15
146 |157
155 |150
178 |188
161 (168
Falls of
, : : 0°50 in.
Heaviest Daily Rainfall. ane
above.
eS
Sark Alderney. | 4 | 3
a | 3
Dm |
in. ie,
0°67 23rd 0°83 23rd i 1
0°45 25th 0°49 14th —|\|—
0°70 11th 1:03 12th 1 3
(0-17 12th 0:37 4th —|—
10°37 11th 0°51 19th — 1
0°49 6th 1°08 8th — 1
10°75 24th 0°71 24th 1 2
0°45 18th 0°58 28th — 1
0°13 15th 0°11 29th —|—
1°84 13th ? Seale,
1:07 16th 1:14 23rd 8 t
0°40 14th 0°64 14th — | 1
1°84 Oct. 13th P ii Sole
1°38 June 8rd! 1°55 Nov. 15th} 14 | 15
0°62 Feb. 16th) 1°04 Apl. 24th} 1 6
1°11 Nov. 25th) 1°15. Oct. 1st) 6 re
1:16 June 28th! 0°85 Nov. 8th) 10 | 15
|
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‘ is
COUNCIL FOR THE YEAR 1912.
PRESIDENT:
LIEUT.-COLONEL T. W. M. DE GUERIN.
VicE-PRESIDENTS:
Mr. E. D. MARQUAND, A.LS.
Mr. A, COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
Mr. G. T. DERRICK.
Mr. WM. SHARP.
Dr. J. AIKMAN, M.D., C.M., L.R.C.S.
REv. W, CAMPBELL PENNEY, M.A., Principal of Elizabeth
College.
REV. G. E, LEE, M.A., F.S.A., Rector of St. Peter-Port.
Mr. WILLIAM CAREY, Bailiff.
HON. SECRETARY : HON. TREASURER:
Mr. H. EK. MARQUAND. Mr. C. G. DE LA MARE.
COUNCIL:
Mr. J. LINWOOD PITTS, M.J.L, F.S.A. (Normandy).
Mr. F. L. TANNER, L.D.8., F.R.C.S.
Miss A. L. MELLISH, M.A.
Mr. B. T. ROWSWELL.
REv. F. E. LOWE, M.A.
Miss M. BROWNE, B.A.
LIST OF MEMBERS (1911).
i
-o~
1891—Aikman, Dr., M.D., C.M., L.R.C.S.
1908—Aikman, Mrs.
1903—Aikman, Miss
1904—Allés, Mr. G. F...
1897—Ashburne, Miss R.
1911—T. B. Banks..
1903—Benson, Dr., M.D. 0. M. Fr. R. ©. s.,
Mainboree 56
1882—Bichard, Mr. T. M.
1904—Bishop, Mr. Julius, Jurat of the
Royal Court..
1903—Bishop, Dr. Henry meee ED.
MER GS ..elieCobee neue.
1907—Bisson, Mr. T.
1904—Blampied, Mr. C.
1910—Blicq, Mr. J. HE...
1907—Bostock, Miss the
1909—Browne, Miss Mary, B.A.
1911—Brownsey, Mr.
1907—Buller, Dr. .
1889-—Carey.,uVin Gig Aine ach uewik rene
1890—Carey, Mr. J. J., late M.I.C.E.,
F.R.G.S. ears
1897—Carey, Miss E.
~1908—Carey, Mr. T. W.
Guernsey
1890—Carré, Miss B.
1911—Carruthers, Dr. J.
1907—Chalmers, Mr. A. lL... ..
1911—Cheeswright, Miss E. 8S... ..
1882—Collenette, Mr. A., F.C.S...
1882—Collings, Colonel A.H. .. .. ..
1890—Collings, Miss M. B...
1882—Cole, Miss R. Bm iad) Bo
1906—Corbin, Dr. E. K., M.R.C.S. ..
1908—Corbin, Miss R.
1899—Cromartie, Mr. D. ‘B.. .
1912—Curtis, Mr. S. Carey, a Be, 1. B. Aue
18983—De Guérin, Lieut.-Col. T. W. M.,
Jurat of the Royal Court..
e
Queen’s Road.
.. Queen’s Road.
.. Queen’s Road.
. Gothic Cottage, St. Martin’s.
. Granville House.
. High Street.
.. Saumarez Place.
Gazette Office.
. Grange.
..’°7, Grange Road.
.. The Laurels, Vale.
. La Fosse, St. Martin’s.
.. Brock Road.
.. Smith Street.
. Ladies’ College.
. Pollet.
.. Carlson Crescent, Southampton. '
. Summerland, Mount Durand.
.. Cobo.
. Cambridge Park Road.
se ee «ee «+ Somerset Place, Queen’s Road.
1891—Carey, Mr. William, Bailiff of Tee
: . Queen’s Road.
. Elm Grove.
. College Terrace.
.. Corbiére, St. Pierre-du-Bois.
.. The Studio, Sark.
. Fort Road.
Grange.
24, Saumarez Street.
. 39, Canichers.
. Saumarez Street.
. Stanley Road.
Norfolk Lodge, Doyle Road.
Mont Saint, St. Saviour.
. Le Mont Durant, Mount Row.
LIST OF MEMBERS. 25a
1893—De Guerin, MissC. M. .. ..
1906—De Jersey, Colonel Grant..
1882—De La Mare, Mr. C. G.
1882—Derrick, Mr. G. T. aS
1894— De Saumarez, Lord .. .. ..
1893—Durand, Colonel C.J...
1906—Falla, Mr. A... .
1904—Fleure, Dr. Herbert ae D. Bae
1908—Foote, Advocate W. H.
1896—Foster, Miss F. A. .. .. ive
1905—Guilbert, Mr. T. J., States Sieteron
1882—Guille, Miss'S. .. ... ss. 0s
1893—Harvey, General..
1906—Henry, Mr. S. M.
1893—Hocart, Mr. J. 8.
1911-—Hocart, Mr. A. J., Jurat of ‘the ] oval
Court ;
1906—Irish, Mr. John W. B.
1903—Kelson, Mrs. Ne
1884— Lee, Rev. G. E., M.A., F.S.A.
1882—Le Cocq, Mr. Saumarez
1893—Le Cocq, Captain
1903—Le Mottée, Colonel G. H. ef of
the Royal Court .
1911—Le Peilley, Mr. J,Q... ..
1882—Lowe, Rev. F. E., M. A., F. E. S.,
Membre de la sgh Lepidop-
tére de Genéve :
1911—Luff, Mr. E. A. a
1903—Macleane, Mr. EK. F. H. ne
1894—Mainguy, General F. B., Jurat of
the Royal Court . a
1888—Marquand, Mr. E. D. ALS. sf
1896—Marquand, Mr. H. E. ..
1907—Mauger, Mr. H. E., H.M.’s Sheriff
1900—Mellish, Miss A. L., M.A.
1911—Metman, Mr.
1908—Moon, Miss A. .. ..
1905—Naftel, Mr. A. M.
1907—Nicolle, Mr. E. T.
1899—Penfold, Rev. J. B. V.
1889-——Penney, Rev. W. C., M.A.
1882-—Pitts, Mr. J. L., F.S.A. (Normandy)
1906—Randell, Miss Clara .. oc
1896—Robilliard, Mr. P. E. res a
1903—Robinson, Dr. E. L., M.R.C.S.,
Jog Og oe oe ee es ae
1911—Ross-Taylor, Dr. nO on IO
.. Le Mont Durant, Mount Row.
. Grange Lodge.
. Crottes,.
.. King’s Road.
.. 43, Grosvenor-sq., London, 8.W.
. Grange Villa.
.. Les Hauteurs, Vale.
. University College, Aberystwyth.
. 6, New Street.
Granville House.
Rohais.
.. Cressington, Gravées.
. Oakleigh, Mount Durand.
. Mount Row.
. Les Mielles, Vale.
. Blanc Bois, Castel.
. Elm Grove.
.. Doyle Road.
. George Place, Union Street.
. Clifton Lodge.
. Beau Séjour, Cambridge Park-rd.
. Hauteville.
. Vauvert.
. St. Stephen’s Vicarage.
. La Chaumiere, Brock Road.
. La Bigoterie.
.. Les Rocquettes.
. 46, Kimbolton Road, Bedford.
Star Office.
King’s Road.
. Ladies’ College.
. Naftiaux, St. Andrew’s.
King’s Road.
.. 13, George Road.
.. 3, Norfolk Terrace, Jersey.
.. Grange.
. Elizabeth College.
Canichers.
.» Grove End, Doyle Road.
. La Piette.
.. Melrose, Gravées.
. 1, Queen’s Road.
254 LIST OF MEMBERS.
1904—Rowswell, Mr. B. T... .. «. .. Les Blanches, St. Martin’s.
1911—Ryder, Colonel F. J... .. .. .. District Office.
1883—Sharp, Mr. W. .... .. .. «. ‘‘Sherborne,’’ Rocquettes.
1907—Sinel, Mr. Joseph... .. «. «. 12, Royal Crescent, Jersey.
1912—Smith, Miss W., B.Sc. .. .. .. Ladies’ College.
1911—Smith, Mr. W.H. .. .. .. .. North Esplanade.
1909—Spencer, Mr. R. Ps .. ... ... +. Brock Road.
1911—Standen, Miss Helen..
1903—Tanner, Mr. F. L., L.D.S., F. R. C. S, Vauvert House.
1905. Taree Mrs. sit ame . Vauvert House.
1893—Tourtel, Rev. R. ie M.A., ‘BD.,
F.S.A. (Normandy) ..... .. Torteval Rectory.
1906—Végeais, Miss .. . .» » brock Road:
1912— Warren, Mr. J. P., B. Sc. ae . 10, Mount Row.
1903— Wild, Dr. H.8., M. o C.8: Zs R.C. P. Gravées.
1908—W oolcombe, i Ronertiloy ay DiSAN:
LL.D., F.R.G.S., M.R.I.A. .. 14, Waterloo Road, Dublin.
TRANSACTIONS OF Tk SOUIETY.
The Eighth Annual Soirée of the Society was held in
the Lecture Hall of the Guille-Allés Library on February 14,
1911. As on previous occasions the entertainment consisted
of short lectures interspersed with instrumental and vocal
music. The artistes were Miss R. Edmonds, Miss A, Phillipp,
Mrs. Campbell and Mr. H. F. Morres, to whom, with the
lecturers, and Mr, F. Tanner, who was responsible for the
organization, the best thanks of the Society are due.
The President of the Society, Col. T. W. M. de Guérin,
referred to the aims of the Society, whose work, he thought,
compared favourably with that of similar societies on the
mainland.
It had lost from various causes some of its most zealous
workers, who could ill be spared from such a small community.
He trusted that the membership would continue to increase,
and that the Society’s work would not be crippled for want of
funds. He suggested that the idea, discussed some time ago,
of obtaining phonographic records of the island patois which
is fast dying out, should be carried into effect. Colonel de
Guérin concluded by reminding the audience of the very
valuable relics of the past to be seen in the Lukis Museum.
Mr. W. Sharp followed with a most interesting paper on
“Animal Mimicry.” In this he gave many instances of
animals, birds and insects which, to escape the attention of
their enemies, adapted themselves in such a wonderful manner
to the trees, leaves, branches, soil, &c., on which they rested,
that it required very careful search to see them.
Mr. A. Collenette gave a short lecture and demonstration
on “ Matter,’ with vacuum tube experiments. This was
extremely interesting, Mr. Collenette dealing with his subject
in a most lucid manner,
The last lecture was by the Rev. F. J. 8S. Wyeth, B,Sc.,
M.A., who dealt with “The Elephant and his Ancestors.”
The learned lecturer traced clearly the various stages in the
evolution of the present types of elephants. The lecture, as
well as Mr. Sharp’s, was illustrated by a number of lantern
256 MEETINGS.
pictures. Mr. Wyeth’s remarks, which were ey lengthy,
were, however, very heartily applauded. —
This terminated a ver y successful evening at 10.35.
Monthly Meeting held on March 15th, 1911, Colonel T. W.
M. de Guérin, President, in the chair.
Five new members were elected, viz.:—Jurat A. J.
Hocart, Miss Helen Standen, Miss E. 8. Cheeswright, Mr.
E. R. Colbron and Dr. Ross-Taylor. Two other members
were proposed for election.
Col. de Guérin showed a photograph of a sculptured
stone representing the Crucifixion over a doorway at Courtil
Rozel, Mount Durand.
Mr. H. EH. Marquand showed photographs of a curious
old Guernsey “ crasset” recently discovered at the Vale.
Miss I. Carey then read a most interesting paper entitled
“An eminent Guernseyman: Sir Henry de Vic.” Miss
Carey’s paper is printed in the current volume of the Trans-
actions.
A discussion on the proposed exploration of caves in the
island then followed. The principal speaker was Mr. J. Sinel,
of Jersey, who gave many details of the success which had
attended the exploration of a large cave in the sister island.
Monthly Meeting held on October 18th, 1911, Colonel T. W.
M. de Guérin, President, in the chair.
The attendance was large. Several curiosities were
shown, including fragments of neolithic pottery, flints, &c.
Colonel de Guérin read a letter from Mr. J. de Carey
asking that the Society should endeavour to save the old
tower near La Hougue du Pommier, at the Castel, from
falling into pieces.
Colonel de Guérin was requested by the Society to con-
sult Mr. Hocart, the proprietor of the tower, and see what
arrangements could be arrived at with a view to its preserva-
tion.
Two excellent photographs of the tower were exhibited
at the meeting.
Mr. A. Collenette read a paper entitled “ Notes on the
geological results of the summer excursions.” See page 278
of this volume.
One of the most interesting objects exhibited during the
evening was a core of syenitic granite from the Grand Camp
MEETINGS. 257
quarry (see Report of Geological Section, page 267, and
Mr. Collenette’s remarks on page 285).
At the close of the paper a very hearty vote of thanks
was moved to Mr. Collenette for his valuable address.
The shaft and core have been secured for the Guille-
Allés Museum.
Monthly Meeting held on November 15th, 1911, Colonel T. W.
M. de Guérin, President, in the chair.
The President reported that the old tower had been
satisfactorily restored, at the cost of £2, under the supervision
of Mr. J. J. Carey.
Mr. B. T. Rowswell exhibited a magnificent specimen of
the larva of d. atropos, which had been found in a garden
at the Fosse André. It is apparently the first record of the
uncommon brown form of this larva.
Mr. Rowswell read a lengthy and most interesting ae
which included a correspondence in the Zoologist of ‘1872 as
to whether Guernsey birds were British.
Mr. Rowswell prefaced his paper by relating a remark-
able fact that had come under his observation last October,
when he detected a starling imitating the cry of the wryneck.
Colonel de Guérin then read a report he had received
from Mr. E. T. Nicolle, Secretary of La Société Jersiaise, on
the most recent researches which had been made in La Cotte
Cave, St. Brelade’s, Jersey.
A vote of thanks was accorded to the Société Jersiaise
for their kindness in furnishing this Society with the report,
which will appear later in the Transactions of La Société
Jersiaise.
Annual General Meeting held on December 13th, 1911, Colonel
T. W. M. de Guérin, President, in the chair.
Mr. W. H. Smith, G.W.R. Co., who had been proposed
and seconded at the November meeting, was unanimously
elected.
The Council’s Annual Report was read by the hon. secre-
tary and the Treasurer’s Report by Mr. C. G. de la Mare.
Colonel de Guérin reported that he was in communication
with Mr. Reginald Smith, of the British Museum, in con-
nection with the cachette, near Mont Chouet, and would
probably have something to report about it at a future
meeting.
258 MEETINGS,
Mr. B. Rowswell passed around for inspection three relics
of the year 1805, consisting of framed codes of signals and
stations of officers and men on board a British warship. All
had been beautifully painted by a naval officer of the above-
mentioned date. The signals, &c., were all of local interest.
The Entomological Report (prepared by the Rey. F. E.
Lowe) was read by Mr. W. Sharp; the Geological Report
by Mr. C. G. de la Mare ; Marine Zoology Report by Mr. F.
Tanner, and the Ornithological Report by Mr. B. Rowswell.
All the Reports mentioned above were adopted. No Folklore
Report was read.
Mr. C. G. de la Mare was re-elected Treasurer, and Mr.
H. KE. Marquand re-elected Secretary.
Messrs. B. Rowswell and J. L. Pitts were appointed
Auditors.
On the proposition of Mr. Tanner, seconded by Mr. W.
Sharp, the whole of the Council were re-elected.
During the evening Mr. Collenette suggested that an
excursion be made to Perelle to investigate the geological
strata there.
The meeting terminated at 9.20,
Monthly Meeting held on January 24th, 1912, Colonel T. W.
M. de Guérin, President, in the chair.
This meeting, as usual, was devoted to Mr. A. Collenette’s
annual paper on the Rainfall and Sunshine of the previous
ear.
i Previous to this an interesting painting of the Rock
masses at Jerbourg Point, the work in 1858 of Captain Keeling,
was passed around for inspection.
Mr. Collenette referred to a remarkable discovery he and
Mr. 8. C. Curtis had made of the remains of an ancient beach
at extreme low water in Vazon Bay. From measurements
taken this beach is at the same level as a beach found at a
considerable depth whilst a well was being sunk near Roc-
quaine Bay.
~ Mr. Collenette then read his paper ou the “ Rainfall and
Sunshine of 1911.” This was illustrated by a large number
of diagrams shown on the screen by means of the electric
lantern.
The paper will be found in the Transactions for the year
oi:
A hearty vote of thanks to Mr. Collenette for his valuable
paper was moved and adopted by acclamation.
REPORTS. : 259
Report of the Council, 1911.
In presenting its Report for the year 1911 the Council
has much pleasure in stating that the work of the Society has
been successfully carried out on its usual lines. In addition
to the indoor meetings a number of excursions have been
made to different parts of the island. These were, as a rule,
well attended, and much interesting work was done, though
the hope (raised by the success of the Jersey people in this
direction) of finding evidence of human occupation in neo-
lithic times in some of the caves on the south coast was not
realized. An account of the geological work done during the
year will be found elsewhere in this volume.
Mr. J. Hocart having kindly offered to conduct the mem-
bers: of the Society and friends to various points of interest
in the neighbourhood of L’Ancresse and Fort Doyle, two
excursions were organised to visit them. On the first occasion
an ancient subterranean chamber at Mont Cuet, L’An-
cresse, was visited. This was discovered some years ago
by Mr. Hocart, and in it were found fragments of a two-
handled vase of unglazed pottery. This is now in the
Museum of the Guille-Allés Library. These fragments
have recently been submitted to Mr. Reginald Smith, of the
British Museum, and, in his opinion, they are probably
medieval, and parts of a cooking-pot, but the two handles and
the thinness of the pottery are unusual in such vessels of that
period. The chamber itself is bottle-shaped, and excavated
on the side of the hill. Its dimensions are as follows :—
Depth, 18 feet ; chamber, 8 feet deep and 3 feet 8 inches in
diameter ; neck or vertical shaft leading to chamber, 10 feet
deep, with a diameter of 18 to 20 inches. The sides of both
chamber and shaft are lined with dry masonry of water-worn
stones. Its use is at present undetermined. The party then
visited La Chaise au Prétre at Créve Coeur, and thence pro-
ceeded to Fort Doyle.
On September 13 an excursion was made to the Houmet
Paradis, near Bordeaux Harbour, where Mr. Hocart pointed
out the remains of an éperquerie, or ancient fish-drying house,
The party then visited the remains of the foundation of the
Chapel of St. Magloire in the neighbourhood. Also the site
of La Croix Bernard. On September 30 the Society visited
the Manor House of Anneville, a short history of which was
given by the President (vide paper by the President, Colonel
de Guérin, on “ Feudalism in Guernsey,” Transactions, 1909,
page 58). The old manor house is now used as a stable.
260 REPORTS.
Its gothic porch, which is in an excellent state of preservation,
much resembles that of the west end of the Vale Chnrch, and
is probably of the same date. Till quite recently the Feudal
Court of Anneville met in this building. At the back of the
manor house are the remains of the Chapel of St. Thomas
@’Anneville. Unfortunately its appearance has been quite
spoilt by its being converted into a shed.
The Garenne d’Anneville was next visited. This ancient
warren, which is about 100 yards square, is surrounded by a
moat containing water, crossed 1n one place only by a roughly
constructed bridge, its object being to prevent the escape of
the rabbits. It was probably constructed by Sir William de
Chesney who, in 1260, was granted by Prince Edward (after
Edward I. of England) then “ Lord of the Isles,” the right of
free warren on his manor. The present Seigneur of Anne-
ville, Mr. W. Faschen Andros, still holds the garenne.
The usual interest has been maintained at the indoor
meetings, and the annual soirée was from all points of view a
brilliant success, affording much pleasure to a very large
audience, and a substantial increase to the Society’s funds,
and the Council takes this opportunity of thanking those
ladies and gentlemen to whose efforts this success was due.
The membership, which at the beginning of the year was
81, has risen to 87. The Council would gladly welcome to
the ranks of the Society those who would take an active
interest in Botany, [Entomology, and especially Marine
ZLoology. So far the losses the Society has recently sustained
in these departments have not been made good.
From the Hon. Treasurer’s statement it will be seen that
the excursions were very costly, and financially did not pay,
yet in spite of this there is a satisfactory balance.
The Council wishes to express its thanks to the Council
of the Guille-Allés Library for their continued kindness.
Exchanges with the Society’s Library.
The following works have been received during the year
in exchange for the Society’s Transactions, and it is gratifying
to note that these exchanges cover a much larger field than
ever before :—
Journal of the Torquay Natural History Society.
Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institute.
Bulletin de la Société Jersiaise.
Handbooks I. and II. Horniman Museum.
Ith Annual Report of the Horniman Museum and Library for
L910: )
REPORTS. 261
Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Science of Philadelphia.
—Vol. XXIII., January to March, 1911.
Pamphlet : Finland—its Autonomy and Fundamental Laws.
biéme Fascicule du Journal de Jean Chevalier—Société Jer-
siaise.
Bulletin del Laboratorio in Portici.
From the British Museum :—
Guide to Mushrooms—Poisonous or Worthless Fungi.
Animals, Plants and Minerals mentioned in the Bible.
British Hymenoptera of the Family of Chalcidide.
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of Plymouth
—Vols. VII., VIII., IX. (Part I.)
Bulletin of the Lloyd Library, Cincinnatti.
Transactions of Wisconsin Academy—Vol. XVI., Parts 1 to 6.
From Mr. John Parkinson :—
Rocks of La Saline—Northern Jersey.
Rocks of the South-Eastern Coast of Jersey.
Diabase at Sorel Point, Jersey.
Pyromerides of Bouley Bay, Jersey.
Actes des Etats de Jersey—Société Jersiaise.
Report of the Librarian of Congress—Washington.
Report on the Progress and Condition of the U.S. National
Museum for year ending June, 1910—From Mr. Joseph
Sinel.
Report on the Exploration of the Paleolithic Cave, La Cotte,
Jersey, which appeared in Jan for December, 1910.
Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Phila-
delphia.—Vol. LXIII.
Travaux Scientifiques du Laboratoire de Zoologie et de Physio-
logie Maritime de Concarneau.—Tome II., Fase 1, 2, 3, 4,
2, 6, 7 and last.
Societé Jersiaise :—
Actes des Etats de Tle de Jersey—1780-1785.
Library of Congress, Washington :—
Annual Report, 1911.
Smithsonian Institute, Washington :—
Annual Report for year ending June 30, 1910.
REPORTS.
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REPORTS. 263
Report of the Entomological Section, 1911.
The year 1911 has not presented much that is new to the
Society concerning Entomology. This is not altogether
surprising. First, because as the years go by, it is evident
that there must be fewer discoveries to make; secondly,
because as the Island becomes more covered with buildings
and glass, we have a far smaller and less prolific area to deal
with ; and, thirdly, unfortunately there are at present very
few persons among us interested in Entomology who may be
relied upon to record their observations. The first white
butterfly that came under my notice was on March 22, Pieris
Rape, a late date. On May 15 I took a full fed larva of
Axglia putris, at Icart, which emerged on May 28th. This
insect is reputed to pass the winter in the chrysalis stage and
the moth to emerge in June or July. The above, therefore,
seems to be an abnormal occurrence. This year we are able
to congratulate ourselves on the return of that rare immigrant,
blue Lampides baticus, the Pea-pod Argus. I first saw it on
August 11th flying round Colutea arborescens in my garden.
On being captured it proved to be a battered female and was
instantly liberated, but it suggested the promise of a late
autumn brood fed up in the Island. And this hope was
fulfilled. On September 5th there were six specimens flying
in the garden, and after that the species became abundant
both with me and in the Candie Grounds until the end of
September. I was successful in obtaining a good supply of
egos from caged females. These hatched, but all the larve
were lost through neglect owing tomy being much engaged at
the time over other matters. This was the more to be
regretted as Mr. N. C. Rothschild and his assistants of the
Thring Museum were eagerly awaiting the opportunity of
observing the early stages of this insect for publication.
On August 16th 1 took an extremely small and perfect
female specimen of Pieris Nap?, measuring only 28 mm. in
wing expanse. The capture at Stiffa, near Zurich, of a
number of similar dwarf specimens of this insect is the
subject of an interesting note by Mr. P. Muschamp (Entom.
Record, p. 273, of this year), He proposed the name minima
for this aberration, but it appears that the Belgian entomo-
logist, Mons. L. Lambillion, had already given the name
napella to those examples of P. napi measuring 28 mm. in
expanse in his Catalogue of the Butterflies of Belgium, 1903.
But perhaps the most interesting entomological event of
1911 was the finding of a larva of Acronycta aceris close to
S, Stephen’s Church by the Rev. C. B. Lucas. This insect
264 REPORTS.
has not before been recorded for Guernsey in any stage and is
therefore an addition to our lists. On October 9th I received
a remarkably fine and perfect specimen of the Death Head
moth, 4. Atropos, from Mr. R. Luff. And so late as November
13 Mr. Cohu, of Fosse PAndry, brought me for identification
a larva of the same species which he had found feeding on
jasmine. It was the first I have seen of the uncommon
brown form of the larva, the usual colour being a rich green.
General remarks: I have met with one specimen of
Colias Edusa this year. The abundance of the small copper
C. Phleas was noticeable here in September as in many parts
of England. Other agreeable and not infrequent visitors to
flowers in the evening have been the Humming-bird Hawk
and the Convolvulus Hawk. Owing to the prolonged summer
there appears to have been at least one additional brood both
of Pararge megera and P. Egeria, v. intermedia. Of the
latter I took a singularly dwarfed specimen. In the Ento-
mologist Mr. H. G. Lekay, of Upper Tooting, records the
capture in Guernsey of a perfect female specimen of Argynnis
lathonia, the Queen of Spain fritillary, on August 7th. This
capture, though not notified to the Society, should, I think,
be placed on record in our local Report.
Frank E. Lowe, Sec. Ent. Seat
Report of Folklore Section.
THE PASSING OF GUY FAWKES.
There being a scarcity this year of miscellaneous matters
connected with Guernsey Folk-Lore, it may be interesting to
record the gradual local decadence and passing away of the
Guy Fawkes legend and celebration.
There seems to be no existing record of the actual
introduction of this celebration into the Island, but probably
the practice was brought over from England in the early
years of the Nineteenth Century, when a considerable number
of farm-servants and other workmen are said to have immi-
grated from some of the southern counties, bringing certain
of their own customs and festal observances with them—of
which this Guy Fawkes commemoration is believed to have
been one.
The most curious and interesting part of the matter,
however, is, that this new introduction—which, of course, in
itself really meant nothing to the Islanders—very quickly
absorbed and took the place of a much older annual celebration
REPORTS. 265
of their own. From time immemorial it had been customary
on the night of the 31st of December for the boys and young
men of the Island to have in their several parishes a kind of
funeral procession, in which they carried a log of wood down
to one of the sea-beaches and there solemnly buried it. Yet
this customary visit to a cold and gloomy sea-beach, on a
bleak December night, could hardly have been regarded as a
very gay or festive occasion; while the name of Budloe or
Boodloe’ which was given to this wooden log, probably did
not then suggest to many of the participants “the real origin
of the aioe. which was the ceremonial interring of ‘ne
old Bout-de-l An, or the Old Year’s End. Altogether it must
have been a very lugubrious sort of affair. Hence when the
new arrival appeared, with its accessories of a warm and
cheerful bonfire, &c., instead of the dark, damp and depressing
sea-beach of the older dispensation, it is perhaps not surprising
that the change was heartily welcomed and soon grew into
popular favour. The average boy dearly loves a bonfir e, and
that for many reasons, one of which is that he can roast
potatoes in it; and anyone who remembers how good those
potatoes used to taste, will need no further arguments to
convince him of its merits.
The change once effected, the new celebration rapidly
developed. After burning the Guy on the Fifth of November,
some of the more adventurous spirits proceeded also to burn
the Budloe.at the end of December. This innovation proved
much more cheerful. Then the old term Budloe was gradually
grafted on to the newer Guy, and the older ceremony dwin-
dled, while the newer one survived. So matters went on,
processions were started. fancy costumes were adopted by the
processionists, the heges were loyally enjoined to “* Remember,
Remember, the Fifth of November,” and they cordially
responded to the invitation. Thus matters progressed
vigorously for about a century.
Between forty and fifty years ago, when I first spent a
winter in the Island, I recollect that the St. Martin’s Caval-
cade—which always seems to have been the chief procession
in the Island, though other parishes also had them—used to
come through the town, call on the Lieutenant-Governor, the
Bailiff and several other loading residents, while one of the
processionists, at each stoppage, would fire off the dogegrel
verses given below or some other very similar loyal effusion.
This generally elicited congratulations and refreshments from
those visited, and ultimately the procession reached St.
Martin’s by a somewhat round-about route. And there the
B
266 REPORTS.
Guy was burnt. The following copy of the verses referred
to is transcribed from a printed circular kindly lent me by
Mr. B. T. Rowswell :—
KIND FRIENDS.
We take the liberty again to ask you to—
REMEMBER! Remember! the 5th of November,
The gunpowder treason and plot ;
We see no reason, why ounpowder treason,
Should ever be forgot.
Six and thirty barrels laid down below,
The Houses of Parliament to overthrow;
There Guy Fawkes waiting the appointed time
With match in hand to fire the mine,
Thanks to the friends true to their King,
Was not allowed his light to bring,
But on arriving on the spot,
Was foiled in his outrageous plot,
And thus the enemies of our land,
Before the judges had to stand,
And to their cost they quickly learned
The fate they had so richly earned.
So now appealing to your aid,
To help the efforts we have made,
We hold our annual féte to-night,
And burn our Guy Fawkes by torchlight.
Trusting, kind friends, to your liberality to assist us in this
Demonstration,
We are, yours faithfully,
St. MARTIN’s TORCHLIGHT PROCESSION.
sees oe GOD SAVE THE KING.
See years ago the processionists were forbidden to
march through the town because of the disorder that ensued.
Not that the processionists themselves were disorderly, but
because their spectacular display attracted a very undesirable
following of loafers and others who indulged in rough and
objectionable horseplay. Roasted apples used to be thrown
at passers-by, and so were small paper bags filled with flour,
which bags were supposed to burst when they hit the person
aimed at, and the flour was scattered over his clothing. These
rowdy practices have however gradually died away, and
indeed the general interest in the whole affair has for years
been becoming less and less, while this year (1911) the two
Constables of St. Martin’s for the first time officially forbade
the procession on any of the public roads of their own parish,
so that the celebration at St. Martin's, at any rate, is probably
now finally ended.
REPORTS. 267
The Thanksgiving Service that used to be held on every
Fifth of November in the Episcopal Churches, was discon-
tinued in 1859 by Act of Parliament.
[A very interesting article on the Guy Fawkes celebra-
tion in Guernsey, by Miss Edith Carey, appears in Folk Lore
for March, 1908 (Vol. XIX., No. 1, p. 104), accompanied by
an illustrative photograph of the St. Martin’s Cavalcade of
1903 drawn up outside the Duke of York Hotel. |
Report of the Geological Section, 1911.
1.—Rue Cauchée, St. Martin’s.
The cutting back of the bank showed the usual roughly
stratified alternation of sands and clays. The sands are in
lenticular patches, but the clays are in continuous layers.
2.—Miellette Quarry, near Norman Point, St. Sampson.
By recent workings in this quarry the raised beach has
been exposed and found to be more extensive than previously
supposed. It belongs to the 50 foot level and slopes north.
No ground as high exists between it and the sea, so that
when the beach was formed this hill must have bordered
the shore. The upper layers pass into sand and gravel,
and are covered by about six feet of sandy loam passing
into the soil. The beach is again seen in an abandoned
quarry to the north-west, and the pebbles scattered over the
adjoining fields point to the existence of the deposit over
a considerable extent.
3.—Mont Cuet, Vale.
A singular core of rock about 40 feet long was found
in working the quarry known as “Grand Camp.” This core
was oval in section measuring on an average 14 by 9 inches.
The rock is syenitic granite and does not differ appreciably
from the matrix from which it was entirely separated, except
that the grain of the part of the matrix in contact with
the core is somewhat finer. The surfaces are as smooth as
if waterworn, and show slight marks of fluting as though
the core had been forced through the rock forming the matrix.
A special paper on this curiosity will be found in another
part of these Transactions.
4.— Small abandoned Quarry in lane from Fauconnaires to
Catel Church.
The inclusions of fine grained diorite and gneiss in
the Cobo granite are worth notice.
268 REPORTS.
5.—Corbiére, Forest. |
Porphyritic gneiss with numerous veins of felsite and
diorite is here found. One of these veins at the foot of
the cliff, weathered white, and had altogether an appearance
different from the others, suggesting aplite.
6.—Mont Cuet.
In a quarry near the martello tower a raised beach at
50 feet elevation has been noted in close proximity to the
deposit at 25 feet elevation previously noted.
7.—Maison de Bas, Vale.
Another exposure of the 50 ft. beach is seen in the
quarry behind the above house.
A paper was read before the Geological Society of
London on the 22nd November, 1911, by Professor Bonney
and the Reverend Edwin Hill, containing their latest views
on the rocks of Guernsey, and the other islands of the
Bailiwick. One of their conclusions was that there existed
in Guernsey and Alderney a dioritic magma, which underwent
differentiation from basic rocks, such as Bon Repos in
Guernsey and Fort Albert in Alderney, to the so-called
eranites, which they suggested might be the more acid terms
of a differentiation series.
The well-known mass at Pleinmont resembling greenstone
had been proved to be sedimentary, and was considered to be,
like the Jersey argillites, of Brioverian age (this term is
derived from the ancient name of St. L6). The gneiss of
(quernsey, a pressure modified granite, was considered by the
authors to be the oldest rock in the island, followed in suc-
cession by the diorites, the hornblendic granites and the aplitic
microgranites. Then came the diabase dykes and the quartz
felsite dykes, which may possibly be of the same age as
the acid lavas below the Jersey conglomerate, although in
Alderney diabase dykes cut the Grés feldspathique (sand-
stone). The mica traps are probably late paleozoic.
C. G. De La Marg, Sect. Geol. Sect.
Report of the Marine Zoology Section, 1911.
At present this is a section without workers; con-
sequently there is, unfortunately, but little to report this
year.
REPORTS. 269
Three years ago I reported the discovery of a small
colony of little blue anemones in Sark. They have now, I
regret to say, all been carried off by collectors, the last
remaining three going this summer while I was there.
In my report last year I referred to the disappearance
of some of the forms of animal life in the winter and their
re-appearance in the same spots the following summer. I
referred in particular to two walls in the inner Gouliot Caves,
one of which was covered almost exclusively with tens of
thousands of Corynactis Viridis, the other equally covered
with Corynactis Corallina—two varieties of the little Globe-
horn Anemone. On visiting the caves at the commence-
ment of last winter I found these two walls apparently per-
fectly bare. A similar disappearance was observed of several
other forms, notably in the so-called ‘ Grass Cave,” which is
the home of countless thousands of Hydroid Zoophytes.
The difficulty was not to account for their disappearance
so much as their re-appearance in approximately similar
numbers in the same spots. As a result of that report I
received several interesting communications from well-known
naturalists, confirming my observations, though they had never
had the opportunity of observing such large numbers as I had.
I had brought several small colonies home and kept them
in my aquarium where I closely watched them. On the first
Saturday in April—a few days before our only real snow-
storm last winter—I again visited the Gouliot Caves to verify
my observations. I have never seen these caves so free from
water as on this occasion. The pool—some three feet deep—
which has ordinarily to be waded through in order to reach
the inner caves was now perfectly dry. The explanation of
the mystery I was trying to solve was perfectly simple.
These creatures don’t leave their old habitats although they
disappear. On the approach of cold weather they commence
to contract and to lose their colour until they become mere
specks, almost indistinguishable in appearance from the rock
on which they dwell.
Doubtless this is a wise provision of nature ; for when
we remember what a large proportion of their bodies consists
of water, we can readily imagine what would be the result
of a hard frost.
Now, however, with nearly all the water expelled from
their bodies, they are fairly safe.
I tried the effect of shghtly warming the water in my
aquarium, and almost immediately the Corynactis commenced
to swell out and to resume their natural colour.
270 REPORTS.
In July I observed a specimen of the “ Sea-horse” (Hippo-
campus brevirostris) clinging by its tail to a tuft of sea-weed
(Zostera) a little to the N. of Bordeaux harbour. Although
I was able to get several times within a foot of it, I was
unable to catch it. At the October meeting I showed a
specimen of the so-called “ Glass-crabs,” which is now known
to be only the condition in which the young cray-fish first
emerges. When first obtained it was perfectly transparent
and probably only a day or two old. During the week that
I managed to keep it alive two distinct eyes appeared and
also a decided yellowish pigmentation became visible. It will
be added to our Museum.
A remarkable sight was to be seen on Saturday, Dee. 9,
at low tide, on the beach at the right hand side of the Castle
Breakwater. Just above low-water mark were thousands of
the curious little sucker-fish (Lepadogaster Cornubiensis) and
amongst them several specimens of the much rarer form
(Lepadogaster Montaguit).
The only other occurrence worthy of being reported is
the unusual number of sharks and whales which have visited
our coasts this summer.
Several Blue Sharks were seen or taken in the fishing
nets at Rocquaine—one over 16 feet in length.
They are generally described as sleeping by day and
going on their marauding expeditions by night; but one
which favoured us with its attention, while fishing from the
Grande Moie Rocks off the East Coast of Sark in September
proved that it, at all events, was not above stealing a meal
even at mid-day ; in its efforts to do so coming so close to
the rocks that 1t was possible to hit it with the rod. |
During October a couple of whales visited Cobo Bay,
where they disported themselves for three days, easily visible
from the shore.
F. L. Tanner, Sec., Marine Zoology Section.
Report of the Ornithological Section, 1911.
In the paper I read at our last monthly meeting
(November) entitled “ Are Guernsey Birds British?” (which,
as you will remember, was based on a correspondence which
ran through several months of the Zoologist of 1872), I
incidently mentioned that the volume also contained a number
of local Ornithological Notes contributed by Mr. Cecil
Smith and Miss C. B. Carey. The notes refer to the arrival
and departure of the migratory birds that. visit our shores at
sh =
REPORTS. 271
different seasons, and also include references to the occurrence
of rare and occasional visitors.
For instance the shooting of a White-tailed Eagle
(Halieetus albicilla) at Alderney about the 1st of November,
1871, and another at Bordeaux Harbour, Guernsey, on the
14th of the same month, are made the subject of special
paragraphs by both Miss Carey and Mr. Smith. I may add
to this that in our Society’s Transactions for 1908, Mr. E. D.
Marquand has put on record that specimens of the White-
tailed Magle were killed at Alderney in November and
December, 1899, and another on November 6th, 1908.
Starlings, numerous now almost as the sparrow, were
evidently not by any means so in the sixties and early
seventies. Writing about them Mr. Smith said: ‘ These
birds, though the large numbers appear to be only migrants,
must still be considered as partially resident, for, although I
did not see any of them myself during my visit in the summer
of 1866, I have seen several of their eges in collections which
were taken in the island. In Alderney I heard also that they
were very numerous, more so than they had been for many
years.”
And in another number of this volume of the Zoologist
(March) Miss Carey wrote: ‘ Altogether my notes for this
month are very meagre. One or two things, however, have
occurred which are perhaps worth noticing. The first of these
is that in the field close to the house I observed a flock
of Starlings on the 6th of December [1871]. Starlings are
never very common here, and are generally seen in the
country.”
In the September issue Miss Carey stated that she
had seen Choughs on the cliffs on June 14th [1872], a fact
which is worth noticing now as the bird seems to have
disappeared from our midst. I have never seen one myself,
and in the Ornithological Report published in this Society’s
Transactions for 1908, Mr. Ei. D. Marquand said: “ Can any
one say whether the Chough still occurs in Guernsey ?
According to Smith it was a common resident here thirty
years ago, but I have met with no one who has actually seen
specimen of late years, and my own search all along the
south coast has so far been fruitless. But Choughs occur in
Sark, and bred there two years ago.”
Cecil Smith was of the opinion that the Chough should
be protected, for writing to the Zvologist about our local “ Sea-
bird Preservation Act,” “and after enumerating the “ Otseaua de
Mer” which it was the wise object of the Ordonnance to
242 REPORTS.
protect, he said: “I hope also, as in the English Act,
the name of the Chough may be added, for this interesting and
beautiful bird seems, as in our own parts, to be on the
decrease; it cannot perhaps be said-to be “utile aux
pécheurs,” but that small objection would, as before observed,
apply to many of the birds mentioned.” :
If space and time allowed I should like to Woe further
references to the interesting notes in this 1872 volume of the
Zoologist, but I must now pass on and tell you about the 1911
observations on our birds of passage. And first, just one
word about the weather. The sudden burst of extraordinary
cold in the first week of April, with its accompaniment of
blighting frosts and severe blizzard-like snowstorms, is doubt-
less still fresh in your memories. The visitation occurred
just at the time of the arrival of some of the migrants, and
although most severe towards the end of the first week of
April (the mean temperature at Les Blanches on Thursday,
the 6th, was actually as low as 30:2 degrees, with maximum
and minimum respectively of 32°6 and 28°2 degrees), the cold
snap prevailed from the 3rd to the 14th inclusive. The little
Chiffchaff and the Wryneck were with us at the time,
—both of these birds, in fact, were heard earlier than
usual—while the Cuckoo put in an appearance just after the
temperature had returned to a normal condition. But the
effect of the very unusual and very severe cold for the time of
year on bird life generally was most striking, and _ the
practically entire absence of all singing amongst our feathered
friends (which just before had been in full spring song) was
particularly noticeable, especially from the Sth to the 9th.
My own records, which are mostly confined to St.
Martin’s, have been supplemented as last year by notes from
Mr. J. S. Hocart, of Les Mielles, Vale, and from the Rev. R.
Tourtel, M.A., of Torteval, to whom, as also to Jurat G. FE.
Kinnersly, Jurat G. H. Le Mottée, Miss Boley, Mr. G. F.
Allés, Mr. E. Durman and Mr. G. J. Tourtel I am indebted
for valued additions: to my own rather restricted field of
observation.
Chiff-ehaff.—On March 22nd, a perfect spring day, calm and sunny, I saw
and heard a Chiff-chaff in the Vallon trees at St. Martin’s, in the early
morning, and during the afternoon of the same day I heard another in
the Bon Air grounds overlooking Fermain Bay. This is the Society’s
earliest recorded date for the arrival of the bird. It is one of the first of
the summer migrants to reach our shores and one of the last to leave,
while unlike the Wryneck and Cuckoo which give up singing in July the
pleasant note of the little Chiff-chaff continues to be heard right up to
the end of its sojourn with us. On September 25th last the bird was still
en evidence everywhere, and my last date for noticing the cry was.
October oth along the St. Martin’s road.
REPORTS. oS
Wheatear.—This bird was first seen by Mr. Hocart, at the Vale, on April
lst. Wheatears, if I mistake not, are always more numerous at the north
of the island and along the low sandy shores stretching from
l’Ancresse Common to Pleinmont, than inland or on the tall cliffs of the
- South coast. On May Ist I saw one flying low over a field of grass along
the Fort-road, and during the afternoon of the 9th one was feeding on
the Petit Port cliffs at St. Martin’s, where occasionally throughout the
summer I saw a pair. Mr. Hocart’s last date for seeing the bird in his
- neighbourhood was October 23rd. ‘Towards evening of October 12th I
saw one close to the Model Yacht Pond, near Castle Cornet, one at the
Jaonnets on the 19th, and the last on October 31st on the Petit Port
cliffs. This is by six days our latest recorded date for seeing Wheatears.
Wryneek.—This always very welcome bird of the springtime is reported by
Mr. E. Durman as having been heard on March 28th at the Grande Rue,
St. Saviour’s. This again constitutes a record, for the earliest date given
in our Zransactions (1903, 1910) is March 29th. At St. Martin’s the well-
known cry was first heard by Mr. G. J. Tourtel on April 2nd at Calais,
and just a week later by the Rev. R. H. Tourtel at 'Torteval. My own
date for first hearing the bird (at Moulin Huet) was April 14th, Good
Friday, while at the Vale Mr. Hocart did not hear one until the 22nd.
In connection with the Wryneck’s visit to the island this year Mr.
Hocart has written me as follows: ‘‘ Wrynecks were very few at the
Vale this year. When their nesting time came they disappeared. I
consider the reason of this is that there are now so few old trees, and the
Starlings having monopolised those that yet remain, the Wrynecks went
in search of other quarters.’’ Mr. Hocart gives no date for last hearing
the bird. At Torteval Mr. Tourtel did not hear the bird after July 9th.
At St. Martin’s I continued hearing the cry at intervals and at different
spots up to July loth, when it fell on my ear for the last time while strol-
ling on the Fermain Cliffs in the early morning.
Cuckoo. —FEa:ter Monday, April 17th, seems tc have been the day of
arrival of the Cuckoo at Guernsey and Sark, tor my notes show that it
was heard for the first time, and at widely-separated spots on this day.
Miss Boley reports hearing the bird at 6.30 o’clock that morning in the
Sausmarez Manor grounds at St. Martin’s, and an hour later I was
listening with pleasure to one announcing his arrival at Moulin Huet.
During the afternoon, and when in the neighbourhood of St. Apolline’s
Chapel at St. Saviour’s, I again heard the familiar call, and Mr. Hocart
heard it at the Vale. As regards Sark, the Evening Press of the 21st was
my informant, for in it I read: ‘*The Cuckoo was heard at Sark on
Easter Monday.’’ At Torteval the bird was heard by Mr. Tourtel
on the 20th. In all parts of the island the Cuckoo announced him-
self from four to six days earlier than in 1910 As with the Wryneck,
to many people the Cuckoo’s note is heard for far too short a period of
the year, and long before we have had time to grow weary of the sound
the two months and a half during which the bird reminds us that he is
sojourning in the land have slipped by, and the pleasant call is heard no
more. This year Mr. Hocart’s last date for the Vale was June 23rd, and
six days later, on the 29th, Mr. Tourtel heard the bird for the last time
at Torteval. ‘These are practically the same dates as those on which it
was last heard in those districts in 1910. At St. Martin’s, we were
apparently more favoured, for I still heard the cail on July Ist at Les
Blanches, on the 3rd in the Vallon trees (a favourite spot of this songster)
and again at the same place on the 5th, when as a last effort the bird
said ‘‘cuckoo’’ four times. Last year I heard the bird in the same trees
almost daily up to the 9th of July.
Swallow.—In connection with the arrival of the Swallow Mr. Hocart wrote
me: ‘*‘On Easter Sunday, April 16th, it being a very fine day, I went on
Hougue Nermont, opposite Houmet Paradis, to see if the Swallows had
- arrived along the coast (as they are credited by the Vale people with
bo
74 REPORTS.
making their first appearance there) but did not see any. I told my
errand to an acquaintance who was on the hill at the time. I had not
long returned home when he telephoned me that shortly after I left he
had seen three coming from over the sea.’”? Next day Mr. Hocart saw
several flying around Les Mielles. Mr. Derrick also saw some near the
Coupée, Sark, on Easter Sunday. On Easter Monday afternoon (April
1ith) while out in the country with my brother-in-law, Mr, G. F. Allés,
we watched several Swallows flying about over some fields between St.
Apolline’s Chapel and the coast, at St. Saviour’s, and the same evening
we both saw another at La Planque, St. Martin’s. As far as my own
observations go Swallows did not become numerous until the second week
in May—on the 9th of that month however I saw quite a number on the
Petit Port cliffs. As regards their departure I observed them to be
exceedingly numerous up to and including October 12th, after whieh fewer
were seen, and on the 19th very few indeed. Between the 19th and the
25th, I did not see a single Swallow, but on the latter date saw a solitary
one at the Vardes, near Colborne-road. On the 29th some were flying
round the old Camps Mill, St. Martin’s, and also at Les Blanches, during
the early afternoon. On the 3lst I saw several in the neighbourhood of
the mill at the top of the Ruettes Brayes, and the last on Thursday
afternoon, November 9th, near the Tunnel at La Vallette. Mr. Hocart
reports seeing a large flight of Swallows going south on the evening of
September z6th, after which date the birds were in fewer numbers at
L’ Ancresse, and he saw the last on October 23rd.
House Martin.—Again, as last year, I have the record of my own observa-
tions only to give you. ‘The first House Martins I saw were on April 27th
when quite a number of these interesting little birds were sporting about
near the Bathing Places On May 9th they were numerous on the Petit
Port cliffs at St. Martin’s. About the departure of the House Martin
my Notes are scanty, but I saw some in Fermain Green Lane on October
17th, then none apparently until Sunday, the 29th, when two or three
were flying round St. Martin’s Church Tower at 10.40 a.m, Last year
I saw one as late as November 15th, and in 1908 on November 17th.
Sand Martin.—Sand Martins are never very plentiful here so that their
occurrence is worth putting on record. On May 9th I saw a single bird
on the Petit Port cliffs, and on the 23rd of the same month I saw several
flying about over the Fermain cliffs in the early morning. Cecil Smith
considered the Sand Martin to be merely a spring visitant to Guernsey,
not remaining to breed, but only halting here for a few days on its
journey north. And in the Ornithological Report for 1909, Mr.
E. D. Marquand mentioned having seen some in April and May, but not
later, and added that he had not observed Sand Martins at Guernsey for
several years previously.
Swift.—On May 8th, a hot, sunny morning, I saw a Swift circling the Town
Church Tower, evidently one of the little band that yearly takes up
residence there By the 11th the company was apparently in full force
for I saw quite a number chasing each other round the tower and battle-
ments, screeching loudly as they flew. My last dates for seeing these
very interesting members of the swallow tribe were August i7th, one
near the Doyle monument at Jerbourg, and August 25th, one flying over
the Candie-road at St. Andrew’s in the evening. This, I should like to
add, is a most unusually early date for last seeing Swifts, and the fact,
too, that none were seen between the dates given above is extraordinary.
I have seen Swifts in some years in the second week of September, and in
1907 Mr. E. D. Marquand saw one as late as September 26th.
Swallow Tribe.—Early on Tuesday, May 23rd, a sunny and warm morning
with gentle west breeze, I had the pleasure of watching Swifts, Swallows,
House Martins and Sand Martins flying about together over the Fermain
Cliffs. It was a particularly interesting sight, and they looked a very
REPORTS. DTS,
happy family party, as mingling and intermingling they passed one
another and glided about over the furze and bracken-covered cliff in
graceful flight. It made one think of the gathering together of the clans.
Cornerake.—The scarcity of the Corncrake at Guernsey in recent summers
has been the subject of remark in these Reports since 1907, and this year
again there is little, if any, improvement to report. On May 4th Mr. G.
F. Allés heard one at the Cotes Aumones, St. Saviour’s, and on the 16th
in a field opposite Morley Chapel. Mr. E. Rammell heard the bird at St.
Saviour’s on the 14th of the same month, and on the 25th I heard one at
Les Hubits, St. Martin’s. The last reported Cate for hearing the bird
this season was June 24th, when the Rev. R. H. Tourtel heard the cry
very distinctly near the Bourg, Forest. I may add that Naturalists are
remarking upon the decrease of the Corncrake in England as well, for a
writer in Anowledge for May said that this bird, once abundant and
common, must now be considered scarce over a wide area including
Berks and the Thames Valley, Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, Staffordshire,
Surrey, and Hants. ‘‘ The scarcity,’’ he continued, ‘‘is attributed to
destruction of the birds and their nests by mowing machines, by birds
being killed by flying into telegraph and telephone wires, by unseasouable
summers and wetten meadows along the Thames and its tributaries. But
the question may well be asked why the species holds its own in the West
of Scotland, where such conditions are quite as prevalent as elsewhere in
the country.”’
Common Crossbill.—Col. G. H. Le Mottée, of the ‘‘ May Trees,’’ Haute-
ville, reports that he saw a Crossbill in his garden towards evening of
July 13th, and one again the following day. On each occasion the bird
showed no fear and allowed him to approach almost to within touching
distance. Col. Le Mottée’s gardener informed him that the birds (a pair)
had been frequenting the garden for a whole week previous to this date.
There is no mention in the Transactions of the occurrence of the Crossbill
here, but Smitb, in the ‘‘ Birds of Guernsey,’’ records it as ‘‘an occa-
sional visitant to all the islands, and sometimes in considerable numbers,
but, as in England, it is perfectly irregular as to the time of year it
chooses for its visits.’’ According to the late Sir Edgar MacCulloch
many years will sometimes pass without a single Crossbill being heard of
at Guernsey. Writing from Jersey on the subject, in reply to a query
of mine, Mr. Sinel said : ‘‘ Yes, the Crossbill occurs here and is both a
een and a visitor. Just now (July 30th) there are a good many
about.’
Nightjar.——The Nightjar has, apparently, been neither seen or heard this
summer. My friend, Mr.: E. Rammell, was frequently out in the
country during May and June on the look-out for the bird, but without
success.
Quail,—Jurat Kinnersly shot a Quail at Jerbourg, St. Martin’s, on July 25th.
I happened to meet him that morning and he showed me the bird and
called it ‘‘a rarity.’”’ In 1907 the Transactions record the occurrence of
the Quail in several different parts of the island.
Ring Ousel.—Two or three of these autumnal visitants were seen by Jurat
Kinnersly on September 30th at the extreme end of Jerbourg, and he
tells me that he saw some in the same part of St. Martin’s about the same
time last year. The Ring Ousel never seems to halt here during the Spring
migration, all the reported instances of its occurrence are in connection
with the Autumn migration.
Moorhen.—For some winters now a Moorhen has taken up its residence in
the grounds at Sausmarez Manor, St. Martin’s. I saw the bird on Sunday
afternoon, November 5th. It disappears in the Spring and is supposed
to be one of several Moorhens imported into Saumarez Park, Catel, a few
years ago.
276 REPORTS.
Kingfisher.—I saw a couple of these pretty little birds (or the same one
twice) skimming over the water at Bordeaux on August 4th. In the
bright sunshine then prevailing the birds’ beautiful plumage showed up
to perfection. I again saw a Kingfisher at Bordeaux on the 19th
of August, probably one of the two I had seen on the earlier date.
Starling.—A very interesting instance of mimicry in the Starling has come
under my observation this autumn, the facts of which are given in the
following letter which appeared in Nature of October 26th, and in
Country Life of November 4th.
A STARLING’S DECEPTION.
‘*Three weeks ago, or to be quite correct, on September 22nd, I was
considerably startled and surprised, on going into the garden at 9.30 a.m., at
hearing what I thought to be a wryneck’s call in a tree not many yards off.
I listened, and in a few minutes the cr y came again clear and distinct as one
hears it in the Spring and early Summer. I was astonished, knowing it to be
a rare thing to hear the wryneck after the middle of July. T approached the
tree (in which two or three starlings were chattering and whistling) and tried
to get a sight of the supposed wryneck, but did not, although the call was
repeated several times. I put down my failure to the thickness of the foliage
and the ivy-grown trunk somewhere in the midst of which the bird was
doubtless in hiding.
‘* Well, the next morning, and on several days following, the unseasonable,
but otherwise very pleasant note continued to be heard and always from the
same tree, and, apparently, in association with the starlings, for I noticed
that the cry invariably came after one of the starlings had whistled. The
whistle, in fact, seemed to be the signal for the wryneck to sing.
‘¢ Tt struck me as being altogether very curious, and I determined to, if
possible, find out more about it. So one morning (September 27) I resolved
to investigate the matter more closely. Standing under the tree, and after a
little patient waiting, I got a starling well into view and watched him care-
fully. Wageging his head from side to side he chattered and cackled for all he
was worth, then came the whistle and immediately afterwards the wryneck’s
note, in uttering which I quite distinctly saw the quick movement of the
beak. And so the mystery was solved. I waited, hoping to see a repetition
of the performance, but the bird, I fancy, caught sight of me and flew away.
On two or three of the following days I tried to catch him in the act again,
but was not successful. In the early days of October the cry was not heard,
at any rate by myself, but it fell on my ear once more and for the last time -
on October 6, and from the same tree.
7 Starlings are great mimics, I believe, and I am wondering if this par-
ticular bird nas been reared in the immediate vicinity of a wryneck’s nest and
so caught the note from the parent wryneck ? However this may be, I
thought the incident would interest your readers and perhaps elicit addi-
tional facts of a similar nature from some of them.
‘*T may add that in 1901, from August 19th to September 10th, a friend
and myself heard almost dail y what we “fir mly believed to be a wryneck’s cry.
It surprised us certainly, but, other than being very interested in hearing the
unseasonable note, we never properly investigated the matter. The question
now arises, were we and the neighbours deceived by a starling in 1901, as I
Was sO nearly deceived by one this autumn.’
Basin T. RowswELL.
Les Blanches, St. Martin’s, Guernsey, Oct. 18th.
A writer in the London Globe of November 3rd, under the heading
of ‘‘ Latest Science Jottings,’’ commented upon this curious instance oe bird
mimicry as follows :
bo
~r
a |
REPORTS.
STARLING IMITATPS WRYNECK.
In an interesting letter to Nature Mr. Basil Rowswell, writing from
Guernsey, tells how he has heard the starling imitate the wryneck. On
September 22nd, he was surprised to hear what he took to be the wryneck’s
call clear and distinct as it is usually heard in spring and early summer. Yet,
as the writer points out, it is a rare thing to hear this bird after the middle of
July. After careful watching, Mr. Rowswell was able to satisfy himself that
the notes came from a starling. The imitation was heard again at intervals
up to October 6th, and it is suggested that the starling may have been brought
up near a wryneck’s nest. The starling is known to be a great mimic, and
the wryneck’s call may well have been learned by this particular starling in
the way suggested.
OTHER BIRD MImIcs.
The blackbird and thrush are perhaps the starling’s favourite models.
But it may also sometimes be heard to imitate the beautiful notes of the
curlew. It may be suggested that it learns these during those migratory
movements which take it away from our chimney tops to associate in great
flocks with curlews and peewit on the moors and upland pastures. Other of
our native birds are imitators in a smaller way. The blackbird has been
known on rare occasions to crow like a cock, as well as to cackle like a hen.
But it is curious that the bullfinch, which in captivity seems to be one
of the best imitators, has no song of its own, nor is it known to imitate any
other in a state of nature.
BARRINGTON’S EXPERIMENTS,
The faculty of imitation being so strong in many birds, it has been
suggested that young birds learn the peculiar song of their kind by direct
imitation of their parents. And many years ago the Hon. Davies Barrington,
a friend and correspondent of Gilbert White, tried some interesting experi-
ments. He reared linnets under skylarks, titlarks, and woodlarks, and found
that in every case they learned the song of their foster parents. Some of them
thus reared were afterwards hung in a room with linnets, singing their
own songs for three months without losing their acquired song. Another
of Barrington’s linnets learned the song of the African vengolina.
Basin T. RowsweE.t,
Sec. Ornith. Section.
NOTES ON THE GEOLOGICAL RESULTS OF
THE SUMMER EXCURSIONS.
READ BY. MR.-A. COLLENETTE, ¥F.Cls.
0
These notes will refer to the following subjects: (a) Caves ; (b) Rocks ;
(c) Superficial Deposits.
Caves.
I May remind you that it was determined to use the summer
excursions of the year, to search for caves which might offer
some chance of being worked successfully for indications
of Prehistoric Man. The subject was chosen owing to the
success which had been met with in Jersey.
In our Transactions for 1893 (folio 254) there is a note
of the primary excavation of the Goats’ Cave in Jersey,
by Mr. J. Sinel, but the work of a thorough examination
was not undertaken until 1909. I find at the foot of that
note these words written by our then secretary, Mr. W.
Sharp: “ Possibly some of the caves in Guernsey would
repay an examination of this kind.”
I do not think that our Society has altogether neglected
the subject, but our Transactions prove that although we have
visited the most promising caves we certainly have made no
organised effort to bring their hidden treasures to light.
The work of this year may be said to be preparatory,
that is, we have viewed caves with the object of discovering
where we could work effectively.
Our labour has been confined to the following districts
and caves.
1.—THeE Cave avr Les TIevuss has been visited twice
with the result that it was considered to offer only slight
chances of success. This cave has been described in the
Transactions each time it has been visited. On page 13* in
the volume for 1895, the following dimensions are given on the
authority of Mr. J. J. Carey: length, 60 feet; height,
18 feet, and 20 feet wide, at the entrance, tapering down
to 6 feet high and 4 feet wide, with its floor well above high
water mark.
The cave is due to the disappearance of an intrusive
dyke by weathering. The original length was probably twice
* See also Vol. 1896, folio 88.
[1911.]
NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS. 279
its present one for the cliff falls away there at a rapid rate.
Originally the cave may have been an important one, and may
have been occupied by man. The appearances favour the
idea that the occupied portion has been undermined and eaten
away by coast erosion.
A cave ata higher level over the natural arch was
attempted, but owing to the want of a rope it could not
be entered.
In the above quoted note Mr. J. J. Carey speaks of the
second cave as follows: “This cave is larger than the one
above mentioned, and was the resort of a man who for one
week escaped the Custom House Officers in the good old
smuggling days.”
We are now possessed of a good rope thanks to our Presi-
dent, and must give early attention to this ver y promising cave.
2—THe Caves Av La Corpibre (Creux des Avré-
_ tins). These have been visited and described and two visits
have been made this year. On the first visit the party missed
the caves by going down the cliffs on the Hast side instead of
on the West, and the geological detail proving interesting, the
caves were neglected. On the second visit the floor of the
lower cave was worked over.
It was proved that the cave had been thoroughly worked,
that the fine earth floor had been removed and cast up at the
back leaving only a stony bottom. The party carefully
worked over the whole of the earth left and were rewarded by
the discovery of a good specimen of a worked flint, a descrip-
tion of which will no doubt find its way into the Ty ansactions.
It therefore seems to be demonstrated that the cave has been
occupied by Prehistoric Man. The implement is of the
Neolithic Age. The work established, once and for all, the
fact that nothing more is to be obtained from these caves.
3.—By means of a motor boat in September the whole
coast from Saints’ Bay to Les Tielles was examined and
landings were effected at two different spots. The results
were disappointing. The party certainly saw most, if not all,
of the caves described by Mr. Andrews (page 375 of Trans-
actions, 1899), but only one seemed to be of any use to the
Society for its present purpose.
On examining the clifts from the sea it was observed that
the openings of the well-known caves were not easily seen.
Had the position of the Creux Mahié and the Corbiére caves
not been known they would have escaped observation alto-
gether. It is not surprising, therefore, that new openings
were not observed.
280 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
The promising cave was that known as the Dogs’ Cave or
gully. It has been described already in the V'ransactions,*
hence a short account of the geological features and its present
condition is all that I need give. The cave is situate at the
back of a deep gully about 20 feet wide. The gully is
approximately from 150 to 206 feet in length. The first
third of the inlet is reached by the sea and covered by the tide
when full. Above and behind is a level some four or five feet
higher but still within the reach of storm waves. The whole
of this is filled up with huge stones, weighing from one hundred-
weight to several tons each, and interspersed are portions of
the rock zn situ which has not so far been eroded away.
Behind all this is a face or wall of rock eight feet or more
above the rock-strewn floor above described and here there is
a worn rock platform which forms the floor of the cave.
No measurements were taken on this visit, but there
seemed to be about 20 feet above O.D. as estimated on this
visit.
On the floor and beginning some 2 or 3 feet from the
face of the rock, is piled an enormous number of angular
pieces of rock, some of which no doubt fell from the roof, but
there were some points which require examination to determine
the origin of the deposit, for it had the appearance of a head
and may have partly been derived from the cliff. These
angular pieces reach a height in the deposit of 5 feet and
present a clean cut section at the opening of the cavity.
In a note of a former visit Mr. Derrick describes the
deposit as “ An immense mass of stones embedded in earth
and rubbish resting on the original rock. The detritus has
somewhat the appearance of a raised beach.”
I did not see any beach stones, but I may have missed
them. The presence of an earth floor is doubtful if Mr.
Derrick is right that the deposit rests on the rock, but, of
course, it may happen that low down among and under the
rock debris, implements, even of paleolithic age, may be found.
For given a floor, since washed away by running water, the
implements will naturally have remained behind. Itis on this
theory only that the cave justifies working. The original
cave must have been of enormous size, for high up on the
sides of the gully are parts of the cave with the same angular
stones but now standing far away from the existing cave.
It appears to me that there was originally a cave of
enormous size, far exceeding any we know of now. This cave
had an opening much nearer to the sea and had a floor some
* Creux aux Chiens, 1883, folio 79. ig -
NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS. 281
40 feet wide in places and a length of 100 feet or more. The
sea erosion has undermined the floor and carried it away after
reducing it to sand by constant wear and concussions. It
follows that if habitable the cave has lost the greater part of
its value.
The outcome of these excursions is that :—
1, Caves may exist of which we now have no knowledge,
and to find these the cliffs must be diligently searched.
2. The lower caves are without promise and are useless
as regards the search for paleolithic man, but are
worth working by the geological section as they offer
proof of rock varieties not to be met on the surface.
3. That the only caves now known to be likely to yield
evidences of man are :—
(a) The large cave at Les Tielles.
(b) The cave over the arch at Les Tielles.
(c) The Dog’s Cave just described.
In any case the Society has here work which cannot be
undertaken without some form of good resulting, but this
will take several years to accomplish. In the nature of things
the results of the search for caves have been less geological
than my title would have led you to expect ; that fault I will
redeem in my remarks on the rocks we have studied.
Rocks.
In the excursion to the Corbiére there were rock features
somewhat unexpected and of such interest that our search for
caves became, as far as the geological section was concerned,
a secondary interest.
The Corbiére point had never been worked right down to
the bottom by the Society, hence the detail was new. The-
usual gneiss of the locality was much cut up by greenstone
dykes, but on reaching the base of the point a wide dyke of
felsite, which weathered with a whitish surface instead of the
usual brown, was found. This dyke was intrusive, and of later
date than any other intrusive rock seen. The question at
once arose, is the rock a true felsite or an aplite? As I may
presume that my listeners, or at all events some of them are
not students of geology, I claim your indulgence while I
speak of the nature of these rocks and of the problems
involved, and I shall have failed in my object if I do ‘not
make it evident that the matter was interesting.
First point Aplites exist in these islands, but except
for one place in Sark and one on the west coast of Guernsey,
I have not been able to trace the rock.
C
282 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
Second point.—Aplites are usually associated with a mica
rock called “ minette.” Now the nearest “ minette” I know
of is at St. Sampson’s Harbour, and it at once occurred to me
that I might find that rock here also.
Third point.—I have reason to suspect that ‘ Kurite,” a
different form of aplite, is to be found at Bigard on the
cliffs, and it would be of geological interest to have found
these modifications near to each other.
Before going on with the problem, let me show the
differences between these rocks.
Kurite is composed of Quartz and Potash felspar ; Aplite
is composed of Quartz and Soda felspar. In the same way
felsites are composed chiefly of Quartz and Potash felspars
and of Quartz and Soda felspars. The distinction between
these rocks is one of microcrystalline structure.
Fourth point.—Felsites have been found all over the
island, hence usually they offer no difficulty, but they weather
brown as a rule and this rock weathered white.
Fifth point.—In physical properties such as jointing,
cleavage, &c., the rock was a felsite, but there were variations
in structure caused by the original flux, not visible in a hand
specimen, which made me uncertain.
I now give a description of the dyke. It is to be found
in a gully at the base of the east face of the Corbiére promon-
tory. The cliff outcrops everywhere with macro-crystalline
(phyritic) pink gneiss in which numerous greenstone intru-
sions occur. Side by side with the greenstone is the felsite.
Whether it cuts the greenstone (Hornblende-dolerite) or lies
conformably to it has not been determined. This composite
dyke is easily distinguished from the surrounding rocks by its
colours. It is foliated and contorted, and is weathering at a
oreater rate than the adjacent greenstones.
The gneiss is harder and the dykes are overhung by it so
that in places you pass under the overhang on hands and
knees. This gneiss overhang is about 60 feet from the sea
level.
As the question was one of structure I forwarded a
specimen to the Jermyn Street Geological Museum for
examination and report, which report I append.
Geological Survey and Museum,
Jermyn Street, London, 8.W.,
25th July; $9ig,
DEAR SIR,
I beg to enclose a report on the rock from Guernsey
NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS, 283
and wish to thank you for your detailed description of the
locality from which the rock was obtained.
Yours faithfully,
A. STRAHAN.
Mons. Adolphus Collenette,
Brooklyn, St. Martin’s Road, Guernsey.
Registered No. of Slide: E. 9165.
Dyke, Corbiére, Guernsey.—Soda-Felsite.
Fine-grained pale rock with splintery fracture. In a hand spe-
men shows a few minute pterocrysts of felspar.
Under the microscope it shows pterocrysts of albite set in a
microcrystalline ground mass of quartz with a little muscorite and
interstitial chlorite. The rock would ally itself with the soda-felsites
rather than with the aplites as suggested by M. Collenette.
? H. H. THomas,
25th July, 1911.
The rock is proved to be a felsite.
I have not yet accounted for the weathering, but I believe
that it may be peculiar to the soda felsite altered, under
the action of the sea.
As you know “ Bon Repos” Cove is just on the other side
of the Point. So when the Society went to the spot on the next
excursion I eagerly searched for an outcrop of this felsite, but
although the distance was only about 100 yards through
the cliff and I found felsite veins all over the cove, they were
of the ordinary colour containing potash felspar.
Bon Repos is a cove full of geological interest and not
without spectacular beauty. The rock giving it the peculiar
sparkling black appearance is a long-grain diorite which
occurs in a massive dyke right across the bay. This long-
erain rock is dark-coloured hornblende diorite which in other
parts of the island seems to pass into or be associated with
hornblende gabbro. It is found at St. Sampson’s, at L’An-
cresse, and in several parts of the Vale parish. As far as
I know it is not found elsewhere on the South coast.
There are also parallel dykes of close-grained greenstone
(hornblende-dolerite) of fine holo-crystalline structure, offering
no points of difference from the greenstone of other portions
of the coast.
Mr. Hill (see Quarterly Journal of the Geological
Society, August, 1884, page 417) thinks the long-grain here
found to differ from the long-grain of St. Sampson’s. I can
find no difference perceptible in a hand specimen, and I see no
reason for doubting that the long-grain of “Bon Repos”
is identical with the same rock in the north of the island.
284 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
Mr. Hill refers to this inclusion in these words: “ I found
a piece of what seemed to be gneiss imbedded in it” (the long-
grain). When examining the rock I saw the piece but I did
not recall to my mind Mr. Hill’s observation, and after
examining the embedded piece I called the attention of
the members to it, believing it to be syenite. The point is one
of interest as, if it is different from the local rock, it must
have been torn from lower rocks.
One feature I call attention to is the fact that an
inclusion of acid rock (whether granite or syenite I could not
determine, not being able to obtain a specimen), quite distinct
from the gneiss of the locality was found. This must have
been introduced from below the gneiss by the intruding green-
stone.
_ There was a peculiarity which might easily have con-
siderably altered the character of the bay. The almost black
long-grain rock stretched right across the bay from point
to point, and had it not been associated with softer rocks and
thus lost its support, the bay would have been closed by a
wall open below by the action of the sea and probably forming
a kind of Creux.
Another very interesting feature of the bay is the
numerous * pot holes ” in the softer greenstone rock.
The bed les under the cliff, and pieces of harder stone
have fallen on it. There the sea and wave action have
enabled the hard rocks to wear away the dyke into a nearly
flat surface and then into numerous holes, the stones which
have fallen having also been worn into globular shapes.
One of these holes is a kind of “ Venus’ Bath” and offers
a chance (taken by two of our members) of a glorious bath on
a hot day. The water is four to five feet deep and the pond
is an oval cavity of about twenty by ten feet in size. All
around are holes in all stages of erosion, one of which may be
described as a perfect hemisphere, hollow and smooth. Inside
it was a globe of stone, nearly as perfect in shape as a school
elobe and of some 8 inches in diameter.
On the occasion of the motor-boat excursion the green-
stone dykes were noted to occur all the way to Pleinmost
Point, most of the caves and gullies marking the places where
this rock had been washed away and giving rise to the
openings in the cliffs and to the coves.
In one place, to the east of the natural arch to the east
of Les Tielles, I noticed that two dykes of different
appearances laid conformably on eaeh other. I think that if
the upper one (the beds were horizontal) which weathers
NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS. 285
a whitish green prove to be the same felsite as at the Corbicre
it would be of interest to determine whether it, or the green-
stone on which it lies, is the newer.
I have found light-coloured felsites at L’Islet and at other
places, but I have not yet been able to determine their
structure.
Superficial Deposits.
Of this branch of my subject I shall say very little, but
during the excursions to the Vale under Mr. Hocart’s guid-
ance, I was able to add a few notes to our geological detail
and to show the members present a much greater extent for
raised beach at Noirmont.
Under this head I would lke to add that I have found
old beach deposits at fifty feet (about) elevation at Hountel,
Mont Cuet and Gruneaux quarries.
I have also a new level, or what may prove to be a
new level for a beach, but it is not a raised beach, for it is
fifty feet below the soil, and on the sea coast at Rocquaine.
As far as I can at present gather, it is two feet below O.D.
It was met with in excavating a well on the property of Mr.
Robilliard.
This has to be confirmed and I suggest that the Society
shall make this one of its excursions next year.
If I am permitted I shall add to these notes the results of
one of my own little excursions. On the table you will
observe a large block of stone. This was shown me by Mr.
Nicolle, of the Grands Camps Quarry, and I have secured the
specimen for the museum. It forms part of a structure said
to have been forty feet in length, but broken up by blasting
before its nature was known. You will see that there is a hollow
tube in the stone which probably had originally a circular
section but is now an oblong of 9 inches by 6 inches. This
tube has been scored out and refilled by the same stone, a
granite. I believe that it 1s an outlet from a deep-seated cavity
forwater and steam and there are marks of scoring which show
that stones were ejected in quantity.* It 1s in fact the remains
of a past geyser, but the peculiarity is that after it served
its purpose of a vent it became filled with the liquid magma
of granite. The core is quite distinct and has not suffered
nearly as much as the tube from the effect of heat and steam.
The tube is altered for two or three inches around the vent-
bore, whereas the core has a skin of altered rock only.
* It may bea “‘ pipe” ata long distance from a cavity of volcanic origin.
286 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
The length of this outlet yas, as nearly as can be made
out, about forty feet, and it was in a horizontal position,
which may be at right angles to its first position.
Professor Bonney, writing of the microscopic characters
of this rock, says: “ The rock consists of quartz, felspar and
black mica. The quartz contains a fair number of cavities in
many of which are small bubbles, often moving ; but some are
empty, others are dark as if stained,” Of another specimen
he says: “ fluid cavities abundant.”
We have therefore a granite with indications of fluid
infiltrations, and it seems to me fairly certain that water
found its way down into this rock while it was in a hot
condition, possibly from the nearness of volcanic action.
The specimen will remain in the museum.
SPECIMENS EXHIBITED.
Felsite from Bon Repos.—Potash felspar.
Felsite from Corbiére.—Soda felspar.
Felsite (Quartz) from Talbot Road.
Kurite from L’Islet (Romains).-—Potash felspar.
Quartz (Vein) from Grantez.
Diorite (Quartz) from L’Islet (Romains).—Quartz diorite with
Mica (Protite).
Diorite Hornblende from Hougue Recard.—Felspar and Horn-
blende.
Diorite Hornblende from Capelles.—Felspar and Hornblende.
Diorite Hornblende from Vaupot.—Felspar and Hornblende.
Diorite Hornblende from Grande Maison.—Felspar and Horn-
blende.
Diorite Hornblende from Bon Repos.—Long grain.
Greenstone, Hornblende-dolerite, from Les Tielles.
Greenstone, Olivine-dolerite, from Les Tielles.
Greenstone, Olivine-dolerite, from Bon Repos.
Porphyrite from Bon Repos.
Granite from Mont Cuet.—Protite.
Granite from Vaugrat.
Syenite from Vaugrat.
PEDIGREE of
DE VIC.
COMPILED BY
EDITH F. CAREY
‘Thomas de Vic,
living time of the Assizes of 1209-1304.
Name does not appear later.
WITH THE BELP OF
Avice de Vie,
Dame du Cancly, 180%, appoints Ranulph
de Vic her Attorney in 1825.
[f Did she die s. p. or marry her cousin
‘Thomas de Vie.
Col. T. W. M. DE GUERIN.
f
|
Robert de Vie,
living time of the Assizes of
Saviour’s.
{F Did he hold the fief Robert de Vie.)
|
Thomas de Vie
sells fief au Canely to Sir William de
Ante 1258-1.
THOMAS DE VIC, = Lucy,
Acording to Extite of 1274, he had usurped “La ) daughter and co-heiress of (FSir Henry] Le Canely,
‘Monture,’? of certain Jands in Torteval, St. Saviour’s, Seigneur du Cauely.
nnd St, Pierre-du-Bois, since the time of Drew dé
Barentin (ante 1259).
|
Ranulph de Vie,
Attomey to Avice de Vie and Symon de
. Martin in 1323,
Jolumnne do Vie,
living 1299,
meek Peter de Vie,
1309 ut St.
of S
i
Ranulph de Vi
elected Jurat in 182:
dismissed 1831.
Chesney, ante 1831.
|
John Wicko
[2 de Vie} took part-in siege of Castle
Comet in 1512.
one of the gurrison of Mont Orgucil,
t Q i,
|
Richard Atte Wicke
[de Vie} took part in siege of Castle
Cornet in 14
I
William de Wick, Colin he Vie,
tonmnt on fief Blancheland
104
(St. Marti
Jersey, in 13
aviour’s, 1309.
alive dra July
bushel of whent rent b
|
Henry de Vi
of Tortoval, 1293, living in 1309,
Jurat in.'1824,’ deposed, re-
lected in 131.
r
Henry de Vi
nd owed one
heirs of Richard
de St. Martin, Scigneur of Cancly.
Richard de Vic
owed a rente in 1388 ‘a cause de sa
femme" (? same as above.)
Thomas de Vie,
with the heirs of Ranulph de Vie, were
owed a rente of three sous toumnois
(Partage Denit Le Marchant, 1393
Louis de Vie, living 1416 (buys "15 gros =
monoye de rente” from Martin Chivret in |
1401, «nd “12 gros monoye de rente ” from
Guillaume Panton in 1416 (Le Marchant
MSS.)
Pierro de Vic,
died before 1459.
i
i
Michel de Vie,
‘Thomas de Vic, ]
“fil<nin
of St. Peter-Port,
died before 1481.
i
I I
Thomas de Vie, ‘tis Michel de V
Michel.” On 13 Jun lying 1492, owning land
1187, John Fulaize cho: St. Martin's.
as his guardian © par le
prochnines parentes clu di
Thomns de Vie” (Pcither
a lunatic or a spendthrift,)
Maric de la Mare,
dan. and heiress of
Nicholas de Ia Mare,
neur of Surville,
1
A daughter,
= ante 1537.
Pierre du Port, of Jersey.
Jorsey, and of —. Founs-
chin, dau. of Nicholas
7 Fonnschin
i =
Jean de Martha Fouaschin,
Scigneur of Surville, | dau. of Thos, Founschin.
She married secondly
“Tonneste Homme Henry
Lumley or ‘Lomuer,’ and
married him before 1583.
dead by Jul
(large landowner at St.
Sampson's).
Johude Vie, «on of Richard
de Vic, n to his = Had she a daughter by
children, this marringe, who mar-
ried ns his first wife Sir
‘Thomas Edmunds, Eng-
lish Ambassador in Paris,
1616.
1613 reel mel T [eke
¥ frances Hun= A brother [?Cle- Ursula de Vie. Anne de Vie- Jeanne de Vie.
born 1572, of Les chett, bom 1591, ment] mentioned =
Maisons, dau: of Thomas in letter of Sir = 1J 14 July, Henry Astlo Andrew Henry,
peon's. Hanehett, of ThomasEdmunds 1584. Dowihim, Essex of 1 ye dt
Procureur, 1605. Mranghiug, in in 156. Edmund Brett, She died Dee. 24 Vuits. Jurat
Chosen ns insular Herts. (He did not i Captain TN.
depaty f She murried ve- Terit from Wil- drowned off th
fim coudly Sir Abra- liam de Vic in
prvi hom Willianas: 1615.)
ne a [The will of « ‘Their daughter,
Te poem the Clement de Vic, Anne Brett, mar-
Herald's Colle CitizenandCloth- ried Pierre Le
in April, 161 workerofLondon, _ oy, author of
or 3 Caltraps dated 15 Pierre Le Roy's
ce Chief tions Diary.
Sable” Crest, #4 “Elizabs Ursula de Vie
Caltmp Sable.’
Living in Londo,
married secondly
” ing,’ Clerk, his John White, 0
act SP, brother-in-law, soldier in the
Vill dated children men- garrison.
tioned but not
named, and the
utors were
“Francis Need-
ham "and ‘* Wil-
liam de V1
London.)
(Property divided
between his three
sisters.)
Louis de Vie
1588, resigned in 10
de sn malndi
» de ses m
dusay
faiblesse de su yue ct
forces.” He assisted
the composition of th
“ Approbation des Loi
Sold Estate of ** L
Gronges" to Jnmes de
Beauvoir in 1603, died in
1607.
at
On Ist
14, fined
for insulting
‘Thomas de Beau-
voir, fil Pierro.
On 16th June,
1621, condemned,
with’ his brother
Louis, to the
* yusse fosse" for
2 hours for inso-
Tence to Mr.
Bonamy, ut.~
Vailiff. Banished
the island (on ne
comut of his +! vie
scandalense") for
three years, on
Sept. 2nd, 1621.
On Sept.” 10th,
1630, sworn in as
King’s Comptrol-
ler and Advocate.
O.S.P. 1654,
I
Matthew de Vie,
tioned m Partage of Denis Le
Marchant in 1
Martine Beverye,
dan. of John Beverye
(a widow, 3rd July, 1181).
ie 1
Jenette de Beauvoir, Louis de Vie
dau. of Pierre de Beau- | Thomas."* 1502.
he owned the same rentes
as those bought by Louis
| de Vie in 1401 and 1416,
dau
Taurentde vie) of ie }
Bordage Landry, at the
Vauquiédor. Dead by
ith March Thomas |
Collette de Beauvoir,
daughter of Henry de
Beauvoir,
Tunut B.C.
children.
1J eal | - <eeal|
Perotine ¢ ‘Thomasse de Vie Jeanne de Vie, Elizabeth de Vie
dau. 0 " — — —— =a
Collette de la Jean Le Montés Coquerel, of Doe. 18th, 1565
nd Guern
they owned the
rentes bought by Louis de
01 and 1416.
‘Thus affording presump-
2) Surah Chettleton. tion of direct descent.)
Nicholas 1
Jew
Comm, fils
a
15 March, 1 =1) | 2)
Anne Cureye, du Jean de Vie, Grotlier,
Nicholas Cureye, 1580. _Procurcur, 10th
of Blanchlande, aud | July, 1593. Jurat, 1597.
Collette de la Marcle, nirdian to children of
died Juno 28th, 1594
Supposed to have dicd
trom the effects of
witcheraft.
1 =
= Elizabeth de Car- — Madeline de Vie, Elizabeth de Y: Maric to Vie. ‘Thoma deVie Marthe te Vie, pone Marguerted Vie Maridde Vi
t, dou. of Sir bap. Dec. 2 Dap. Deo. 19,154 sold, iu 1618, to bap. Apr. 23, 1581 Richard ' —— __ bap. Jun. 17, 1
(Willinm. de Vi hos, de Garis. Piorre de Beay- § ——— {Etizabeth. $9 = 1) Willian = ——
y _ John Bona left her £50 in his voir, fils Guil- 10th, 111 — Diedinchildhood. Briard. b. 1), 1617.
| widow of Samuel will.) Tai a house TJumes de (heir daughter, Philip de Be
de Beauvoir, and gurden in Havilland, 1 Briard, voir, fils
married thirdly Herthelot Street murried the Rev. Guillhume
| Jean lo Hardy, John do Saus-
| fils Amice. Died Dean of
Sth Dec., 1610. uernsey.)
Marguerite de Vie
|
Philip de Vie, ‘ile
Advocate.
O.S.P.
widow of Leonard
Blondel, and dau,
of John Brebault,
Jurat, aud Rachel
de Lisle, dau. of
Thomas de Lisle,
|
Brehoult, Sarah do Vi
Jean Osborne.
Constable of St.
Ouen, Jersey.
Died 1662:
Turat.
married secondly
Mr. John de
Sausmarez.
‘Thomas:
of N
aud Marie Effurd,
widow of William
Beauvoir.
John de Vie md Martha,
his wife, 20th June, 1583.
Founchin,
elas Fonachin
Tt
December 1
Elizabeth 1
| Nicholns 1
Elizabet
She married secondly
Heury Masham.
avs |
r f ; | P
Elizabeth di Sir Henry de Vie=_ Margaret de
bap. Ist Baronct, Carterct,
15 Tap. N L |
(Died young.) 1597 (born Nov. |
2lst.) Secretary
in the Frene
tongue to Anna Dowee,
Charle:
Created a Baronet
rd Sopt., 1619. |
Chaucellor of the
Garter, 1660.
Buried i West-
minster Abbey
2th Nov., 1671.
In 1617 he sold
“Dit Bigoteric
in Berthelot
Street to Philip
de Benuyoir.
Will dated 1669,
proved 15 E
1072.
Sir Charles de Anno Charlotte de-V
2nd Baronet. 0.
In 1674 he was in Guern=
sey nnd sold nbout £500
worth of land, including
Estate of Normunville,
which was bought by Mr
John Andros,
John, Lord Frescheville,
of Stuvely, Co. Derby.
OP.
AN EMINENT GUERNSEYMAN.
SIR HENRY DE VIC.
BY, MiSs “EDITH CAREY.
To-nicHt I am going to talk about Sir Henry de Vice, one of
the most distinguished Guernseymen in our annals, and yet one
about Whom much ignorance prevails ; in fact, [am afraid that
most Guernsey people have never even heard his name, so
that I should like, if possible, to rescue some details of his life
and times out of the oblivion into which they have been
allowed to sink. He lived from 1597 until the year 1672, less
than 300 years ago, but a vast gulf, not of time alone, but of
thought, custom and general atmosphere divides his day from
ours.
It is not sufficiently realised what an immense difference
the last two hundred years have made to the standards of life
and society in general and to our island life in particular.
Great economic and social forces have swept over our com-
munity, that was only half conscious of what was befalling it.
A Guernsey document*™ drawn up in the middle of the 17th
century shows the exceeding poverty to which the islanders
were then reduced. It gives the population as being about
elght thousand, of whom “not above two have £200 per
annum, not ten £100, not thirty £50 per annum.” Even
allowing for the greater purchasing power of money in those
days I think we may take £350 of our money as the maximum
income of any of our landed proprietors at that time.
Naturally this would imply that throughout the island
there was a comparatively simple standard of living. There
was no such thing as a “leisured class,” but it was at once
usual and expected that men, however old and reputable their
families, should have some trade or profession. Work was
both general and respectable, and women of the best social
standing took a share in the physical work of their households.
I think that an impartial examination of contemporary docu-
ments will prove that from a generation of men, to whom
* “A declaration of ye condition of ye Islande of Guernesey. 1654-1660.
(Guille MSS.)
[1911.]
288 AN EMINENT GUERNSEYMAN,.
labour was a necessity and want an ever-present dread, a type
of character was evolved somewhat like that of wild animals—
jealous and savage, suspicious and passionate, and yet blending
with an animal’s qualities, a touch of the refinement of old
civilisations, and an intense pride in their national traditions.
Henry de Vic, born in 1597, was the son of John de Vie,
who had been successively Greffier, Procureur and Jurat of
the Royal Court—and of his second wife Elizabeth Pageot,
daughter of Nicholas Pageot and Hlizabeth Fouaschin,
As far back as 1252 we find a Thomas de Vic living in
Gquernsey, and married to the daughter and co-heiress of Sir
Henry de Canelly, Seigneur of Canelly. Branches of the
de Vics were large landowners in the town, St. Martin’s, St.
Sampson’s and the Vale Parishes, and at this time the elder
branch of the family were Seigneurs of Surville in Jersey,
while William de Vic, the head of the family, owned land and
houses in London as well as in Guernsey. He married in
Kingland and seems to have lived there most of his life.
Henry’s father, John de Vic, had had a somewhat chequered
career. Whilst he was Grefher he had ventured to oppose the
autocratic Governor, Sir Thomas Leighton, and nervous of
the consequences of his rashness, was so afraid to meet him
that he went into hiling and stayed away from a political
meeting to which he was summoned. A hue and cry was
raised, and on the 18th of October, 1589, an old document
tells us that :—‘ Before daie, certain souldiers were sent by
the Governour to his house. But finding the doores shut, did
forceably, with iron barres breake in the same, and enter into
the house, his wife and children therein crying out for helpe
‘A layde de la Royne!’” As he could not be found, “that
same day being a market day, the Governour caused a pro-
clamation to be made in the market place and also affixed to
the Church porch declaring the said John de Vic to be a rebel
to Her Majesty, and forbidding anyone to lodge or assist him,
and commanding upon pain of death that no man should
transport him out of the island,” and that anyone who knew
where he was should “ runne at him, apprehend him, or follow
him with the cry of Haro,” that by foree he might be br ought
to the Governor dead or alive* On this, John “de Wace being
afraid of bringing further trouble upon his friends gave him-
self up, but prayed that he might have the benefit of the law.
But the Governor sent him straight to prison in Castle Cornet
without any sort of trial. An appeal was laid before the
Lords of the Council who decided that in future the Governor |
* British Museum Add. MSS. No. 11405 ff. 49 et seq.
AN EMINENT GUERNSEY MAN. 289
should only be allowed to send people to prison for martial
crimes, and not, as in this instance, for civil offences.
John de Vic had married, for his first wife, Anne Careye,
daughter of the Seigneur of Blanchelande, but she died sud-
denly and mysteriously, and on the 26th of July, 1594, an
unhappy woman was sentenced by the Royal Court to be
burnt that selfsame day “until her body was reduced to
ashes” for having * compassed the death of the said Anne, as
well as divers others, by her sorcery and witchcraft.”* The
Bailiff who conducted the trial was Louis de Vic, first cousin
to the plaintiff, but in those days no one would have dared to
raise an objection on that score. Four months later the easily-
consoled widower married Ilizabeth Pageot, and she became
the mother of Henry de Vic. After a short time John de Vic
died and his widow re-married Henry Masham, an English-
man who had settled in the Island, and had been granted by
the Royal Commissioners appointed by Queen Elizabeth the
house and adjacent chapel belonging to the hospital of St.
Julien, and classed among those buildings “ dedicated to super-
stitious uses ”’t which, after the Reformation, were alienated
by the State from the Church to which they had been given.
It was here, in all probability, that Henry de Vic spent his
boyhood ; but he seems to have been sent to England at an
early age, probably to the care of that cousin, Wilham de
Vic, who had been his father’s ward, and who was doubly
related to him, both through the Fouaschins as well as through
the de Vics.
This William de Vie was either half-brother or brother-
in-law to a Sir Thomas Edmunds, the English Ambassador in
Paris in 1616 and the Household Treasurer to King Charles
I. in 1624.
I have failed to trace the exact relationship between
them, but I have seen letters written to each other signed
“your most lovinge brother,” and in one of them, written in
December, 1596, Sir Thomas tells Wilbam de Vie that * Your
brother came hither, his onlie errand was to make sale of the
plate in gage .. [which] he and your sister would needs
make offers of the sale hereof first to me. I made him answer
that I was a beggar and not able to venture upon so great a
purchase, and returned manie thanks for their great kindness.
Whereupon he proceeded to the sale of it otherwise.” Sir
Thomas had married as his second wife the rich young widow
of Sir Francis Anderson, who had the additional recommend-
* Guernsey Folklore,” by Sir E. MacCulloch, p. 606.
+ “ Documens relatifs a l’Tle de Guernesey,” p. 42.
290 AN EMINENT GUERNSEYMAN.
ation of being niece to the Royal favourite, afterwards Duke
of Buckingham, and I can only conjecture that it was through
this interest that Henry got into contact with the Duke
of Buckingham’s household and the Royal Entourage. For
I have come across a letter of his, written in 1617—when only
a boy of twenty—to Mr. Nicholas, Secretary to the Duke of
Buckingham, pleading for the release of various ships of
Guernsey and Jersey, “the Sura, wherein Philip Brock is
Maister, the May Flowre, wherein Richard Pipon is Maister”
and others, and signing himself quite familiarly for that punc-.
tilious age, as “ your affectionate friende.”*
George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, although the
favourite of both James I. and Charles I., was heartily de-
tested by the nation. His famous expedition in which Henry
had accompanied him to the island of Rhé, for the relief of
the people of Rochelle, proved a most inglorious failure, and
Henry was subsequently employed by Charles I. to treat with
the Duc de Rohan and the French Protestants for their co-
operation in helping to raise the siege. Buckingham endea-
voured to regain his lost credit with the nation by a second
attempt, but while preparing to embark at Portsmouth he was
stabbed to the heart with a penknife by one John Felton, a
lieutenant in Sir John Ramsay’s regiment. This was in
August 1628, and Henry de Vic was at this time a gentleman
of the Duke’s Bedchamber and married to Margaret de
Carteret, a daughter of the Seigneur of St. Ouen. Among
the Clarence Hopper MSS. in the British Museum is a letter
to him from her brother, afterwards Sir Philip de Carteret,
written early in 1628. It begins ‘* Noble Brother” and goes
on to say “ I have had soe much care that your horse should
not be galled that, taking noe heed but to his forepart the
saddle hath wrung him behind as badde as it was before. . .
neither wolde he ever be fitt for your service. I thinke to
have him over to Jersey and to cosen some Frenchman. Soe
you take ten pieces of my money and buye you a. better
with saddle and furniture—I shall lose nothing by it, for I
shall sell this horse, which is yours, for soe much, or more
if I happen upon a Frenchman, he is good for nobody
ells.”
After the Duke of Buckingham’s death Henry de Vic
had been taken on as Secretary by Lord Conway and Elie
Brevint, the minister of Sark notes in his Diary that “ Henry
de Vik, pompeux en habits est le 4me secretaire de Milord
KKonway qui en a six.”
* British Museum Add. MSS., Clarence Hopper Collection.
AN EMINENT GUERNSEYMAN. 291
At this period he was repeatedly commissioned to defend
our insular rights and privileges in the English Court, and had
also been deputed to buy arms and ammunition for the defence
of Guernsey.* The islands were then in a state of great
danger, their old fortifications and castles were crumbling
away, they had no resident garrison, and no possible defence
against the enemy. Moreover, besides the ever present danger
of an invasion from France, the Channel was so infested by
Barbary pirates and French privateers that commerce and
trade were practically at a standstill.
After repeated requests to the home government to send
them either soldiers to defend the Castle or ships to defend
our harbour, in 1627 two hundred men were sent over, but
were unprovided with outfits (uniforms being then unknown),
with pay, or with lodging, for not more than 70 men could be
accommodated at Castle Cornet. The remaining 130 therefore
were billetted on the principal inhabitants, who had, out of
their scanty means, to maintain them at their own expense.
None of the many acts of oppression of the Stuart Kings
roused such fierce opposition all over the United Kingdom
as this compulsory billetting of soldiers on a free population,
and we find that petition after petition went up to the King
from the Guernsey people to relieve them of their burden ;
for the expenses came to about £60 a week,|| a debt which
the islanders could ill afford to pay, and, to add insult to
injury, the whole population, in time of peace as well as
in time of war, was placed under martial law.t Henry de
Vic was again called upon to intervene and in 1628 martial
law was done away with; and in 1630, on conclusion of
the peace with France the soldiers were taken away, the
amount due by the Government to the islanders for their
maintenance being £1,393.§
In September, 1635, Henry de Vic was in Paris, as
we know from a letter addressed to him by Sir Peter Osborne,
then Lieut.-Governor of Guernsey,|| who, writing from Castle
Cornet, says that he has nothing to write about Newes being
a Rerehandise we trade not in,” but that he hears that Sir
Philip and Lady de Carteret have just reached Jersey in
safety, “having been put to the patience to lye attending
upon a passage five or six weekes.” While Sir Henry was
absent from the island his half-sister Martha, wife of Mr.
James de Havilland, acted for him as his attorney, and on
June 15th, 1638, the Royal Court decreed, at her request,
* Actes des Etats, p. 71.
+ Actes, p. 150. _ Thid, p. 188. § Actes, p. 156.
|| Brit. Museum Harl: MSS. No. 7001, f. 81,
292 AN EMINENT GUERNSEYMAN.
that on the following Sunday it should be announced by the
town cryer, to the congregations of the Vale and St.
Sampson’s while issuing from Church, that they should no
longer tie their horses to the garden wall of La Plaiderie
garden, belonging to Mr. Henry de Vic, on pain of a fine
of 18 livres tournois. The Royal Court then sat at La
Plaiderie, although it was nothing but a mere barn and
so tumbling to pieces as to be almost dangerous, but being
situated in the Pollet and thus at the northern extremity of
the town, we can understand that the inhabitants of the
northern parishes found it much more convenient to tie up
their horses there than to ride them through the narrow
ill-paved streets, sloping down to a deep gutter or rather
open drain, in the centre, and bordered with high projecting
houses, which almost met up above, as were all the principal
thoroughfares of the town in those days. We can imagine
what these streets must have been like on market days
from a Petition about the Market Halls which some of the
principal inhabitants sent up in the year 1670, which says:
‘The common Halls anciently appointed for this place of
Markett have been neglected, and a most beastly and incon-
venient custome introduced of hanging up their beefes and
other slaine beasts for sale along the houses of the High
Streete, and in the same streete they are cutt out, divided,
and sold ; the fish likewise bee laid out and exposed to sale
in the same open streets, which, being narrow enough of
themselves, are so straightened by it for divers houres of
every day in the weeke, but the Sundays, that they are
rendered in a manner impassable.”
In connection with this we must remember that the
houses bordering High Street were not shops as they are
now, but the private dwelling houses of the Le Marchants,
de Beauvoirs, Bonamys, Tuppers, de Sausmarezs, Careys,
Priaulx, Dobrées, &c., and we can realize what grounds they
must have had for signing this petition.
We all know that at that time the Vale Parish was
practically a peninsula, at high tides being only connected
to the island by bridges, and that the Braye du Valle—as
the inlet through which the tide rushed was called—was only
filled in, at the instigation of our most popular Governor
Sir John Doyle, in 1808. But it is interesting to note that
two hundred years previously Sir Henry de Vic thought
of reclaiming this land. Possibly he may have seen similar
work done in the low-lying shores of the Flemish coast,
and in September, 1639, he petitioned Charles I. that these
AN EMINENT GUERNSEY MAN. 293
lands “which time out of minde have been overflowed by
the sea without any endeavour us’d for their recovery,”—or
so much of them as could be recovered, should be granted
to him. Various warrants were forthwith issued to the Bailiff
and to Mr. John Bonamy, jurat, to survey these lands and
to report upon them, but nothing definite was then done.
This is not surprising, for the events which led to the
Civil War and the execution of King Charles I. were crowding
thick and fast. Every month brought fresh trouble in its
train and such trivial matters as submerged lands in a remote
island were speedily forgotten.
In 1635 two Guernsey vessels, homeward bound from
the Newfoundland fisheries, were taken by Turkish ue
and fifty of our finest seamen were sold into captivity™; the
King was implored to ransom them as their relations ‘were
too poor to do so, and in consideration of sch bounty it
was conceded that the arrears of pay should no longer be
demanded. But again no notice was taken of this petition
so that it is hardly surprising that in 1642, when the Civil
War broke out between Charles I. and his Parliament, that
the majority of the Guernsey people, heart and soul, took the
side of the Parliament. In Jersey the de Carterets, who
were Royalists to the backbone, influenced the people to
remain as enthusiastically loyal as themselves, and four
out of the five Guernseymen who remained staunch to the
Stuart cause—Henry de Vic, Amias, Edmund and Charles
Andros, and Nathaniel Darell—were either by birth or mar-
riage related to the de Carterets. From this time we may
fate he traditional feud between Guernsey and Jersey—
Jersey Royalist and Guernsey Roundhead.
As we all know, Sir Peter Osborne, the Lieut.-Governor,
remained loyal to the King, and with a handful of troops
intrenched himself in Castle Cornet, there to hold out for
the Stuarts against the island and the Parliamentary forces.
But if Sir Peter hated the Guernsey Roundheads much
he evidently hated the Jersey Royalists more, for among
the Guille MSS. at St. George is a letter from the Royal
Court of Jersey to Charles [I.—then Prince of Wales—
complaining that Sir Peter Osborne, “commander of our
neighbour’s Castle . . . though he hath had almost all
his bread from hence by which he hath subsisted . . . yett
refuseth to admitt of our persons . . . [for the] reduction
of our neighbours to their due obedience, [although] that
there is nothinge in the world that wee are more ready and
* Actes, p. 177.
294 AN EMINENT GUERNSEY MAN,
willing to undertake . . . [yet] Sr. Peeter Osborne hath
beene pleased to returne our offers for the reduction of that
Island with insufferable scorne.” Thus from i643 until 1651
the islanders had to experience the miseries of being bom-
barded by the guns of Castle Cornet as well as to endure
the complete destruction of all their trade and commerce,
as of course no vessel dare enter the harbour with the risk
of being fired at from the Castle. This must have been
almost the darkest period of Guernsey’s tae and it is
difficult to realize what frightful inconveniences, in addition
to their dire poverty, our forefathers must have gone through.
For one thing there was no prison, for the cells at Castle
Cornet had been used as a prison from time immemorial,
and in 1644 it is recorded that a man who was condemned
to imprisonment for 24 hours on bread and water had perforce
to be incarcerated in the Belfry of the Town Church !
Meanwhile Sir Henry De Vic, who had been knighted
by Charles I., was British Resident at Brussels, and Evelyn
in his Diary notes that on October 8th, 1641, “ At near
11 oclock I repaired to His Majesty’s Agent Sir Henry
de Vic, who very courteously received me and accommodated
me with a coach and six horses, which carried me from
Bruxelles to Gant.” Evelyn carried away a pleasant impres-
sion of the life at Brussels then, for he says “in the small
Cittye the acquaintance being universal, Ladys and Gentle-
men I perceived had great diversions and frequent meetings.”
In 1647 Lady de Vie spent the winter in Jersey with
her numerous relations, and shewed especial kindness to
Prynne, then an exiled prisoner in Mont Orgueil Castle, from
whence he wrote of her as “ faire Margaret.”
We next hear of Sir Henry in August, 1649, when we
find him writing from Brussels at the instance of the Duke of
Lorraine to Sir Edward Hyde (afterwards Lord Claredon),
and trying to dissuade the King’s brother, the Duke of York,
from accompanying Charles IL. on his projected visit to
Ireland, and recommending him to live under the protection
of some neutral power during the King’s absence.* The
following September Charles, while still a homeless exile at
St. Germain, created Sir Henry a Baronet. This title was
probably given as a sop to counterbalance long arrears of
deferred pay, for in October of the same year Sir Henry says
in another letter to Clarendon “ Your Lordship sees in what
condition His Majesty’s affaires are at the present, and I doe
conceive pou bee not ignorant of mine, or if you bee so the
* Clarendon MSS. copied by Dr. Hoskins. In Candie Library.
AN EMINENT GUERNSEY MAN, 295
point I desire and thinke necessary you should know is that I
pray you looke upon me as one who at the farthest is not able
to live on here above three months more.” He then goes on
in cypher, apparently to’suggest some way of raising money.*
That he evidently tided over the evil days is evident from the
fact that he remained on in Brussels for another eleven years,
and during that time his wife must have died, for in a letter
from the Queen of Bohemia to Sir Edward Nicholas, written
in December, 1654,f she describes her visit to Brussels where
she stayed “at Sir Henry de Vic’s who was very carefull and
diligent to doe all the service he coulde.” She goes on to say
that Sir Henry had made a journey to Cologne in pursuit of
a love affair, and she adds—* I am sorie for poore Sir Henry
for lett ine match break or goe on, it is every way ill for
him.” The match nowever must have fallen through, for
there is no record of his having married a second time. By
his marriage to Margaret de Carteret he had two children, a
son, C harles and a daughter, Anne Charlotte.
On the downfall of Cromwell’s government in 1660, Sir
Henry was deputed by the States of Guernsey to congra-
tulate Charles II. on his Restoration, and doubtless he had
to palliate as best he could the adherence the islanders had
always maintained to the Parliamentary party. For his
own unswerving loyalty the King made him Chancellor of the
Garter to the See of Salisbury, an honour which had only
once before been given to a layman, namely, to Sir William
Cecil, in the reign of Kdward VI. Charles also made him
his “ Secretary for the French tongue” and Agent to the
King of Denmark. In 1662 he was made Comptroller of the
Household to the King’s brother—the Duke of York—with a
salary of £400 a year. But amid all his new dignities he
never forgot what he himself calls “affection que j’ay a pour
notre pauvre pays.” The States begged him to persuade
King Charles to renew their ancient Charters, and also urged
him to say that the island, with its population of eight
thousand, carried far more people than it could possibly feed,
and thus was infested by psupers, thieves and vagabonds.
Therefore “would His Majesty authorize the Bailiff and Jurats
to deport such superfluous population either to the American
Plantations ” (where they would have probably been sold as
slaves) “or to the Kingdom of Ireland.” Even Sir Henry
de Vic’s influence does not seem to have been powerful
enough to get this request acceded to, and there was some
* Claredon MSS. copied by Dr. Hoskins. In Candie Library.
+ Hardwick State Papers. Quoted in MacCulloch’s MSS.
296 AN EMINENT GUERNSEYMAN.
delay about ratifying the Charters, as doubtless the remem-
brances of the islanders’ insubordination still rankled with
the King ; however, in 1667 he prevailed upon Charles to
ratify and confirm and even to amplify all our previous
Charters and privileges, and thus obtained for us indemnity
for the past and security for the future. For this service,
it was determined at a States Meeting in December of that
year, that the public gratitude to Sir Henry should be officially
recorded on the public registers, so as to serve as a “ Monu-
ment to Posterity,’ while by Royal Warrant the Constables
and Douzeniers of the Vale and St. Sampson’s, under the
auspices of the Royal Court, set about defining the limits
of the submerged lands in the Braye du Valle for the purpose
of handing them over to Sir Henry, although I can find
no record of this ever having been definitely accomplished.
Sir Henry was then living in London, and Pepys, chro-
nicling a Court Ball held at Whitehall, mentions that among
the dancers “my lady Castlemaine and a daughter of Sir
Harry de Vicke’s were the best.” This daughter soon after-
wards married as his second wife Lord Frecheville, of
Stavely, in Derbyshire. He died in 1682, and as the widowed
Lady Frecheville, she is mentioned as an attendant upon
the Princess of Denmark (afterwards Queen Anne) at the
time the Princess made her escape from London in 1688,
and she was afterwards one of the Ladies of the Bedchamber
when Anne was Queen; she died without issue. After his
daughter’s marriage Sir Henry went to live in Windsor “ for
peace and quiet.” By his will, written in 1668 or 9, when he
was “aged 71 yeeres and upwards” we learn that he had had
a long illness through which he had been nursed by his faithful
housekeeper, Bridget Wing, and had been attended by Dr. de
Beauvoir, who was both a Guernseyman and his cousin, and is
one of the earliest Guernseymen to take up the profession of
medicine of whom we have record. In this will we read of
those who were his familiar circle at Windsor, Dr. Butler,
Canon of Windsor, Dr. Bruno Ryves, Dean of Windsor,
James Smith, Hsq., of New Windsor, Councillor at Law,
all men noted for their learning and their piety. He left
legacies to each of his servants, to the poor of Windsor
as well as to various pensioners he had assisted in his lifetime,
£10 to the poor of the parish of St. Peter-Port, “to be
distributed by my nephew, Mr. James Haviland, one of the
jurats living on the place.” To his daughter, Lady Freche-
ville, “a gold bodkin set with diamonds, in token of my
fatherly affection to her, and the reason why I doe bequeath
AN EMINENT GUERNSEYMAN, 297
noe more unto her is because (of having given) her a liberal
and honourable portion in her marriage.” The remainder
of his estate, both in money and land, and.“ my plate, lynnen,
hangings, etc., and what else is in my house” was left to
his son and sole executor Sir Charles de Vic, and he desired
to be buried in St. George’s Chapel, Windsor.
About three years after making this will Sir Henry died,
and in the British Museum* is a letter written from London
by his nephew James de Havilland to Lord Hatton, Governor
of Guernsey, then living in Castle Cornet; it is dated
December 5th, 1672, and gives an account of his death, as
follows :—
“Tt hath pleased God to call to Him Sir Henry de Vic,
my uncle, who, as he was talking with Mr. d’Anneville
[Charles Andros, was then the Seigneur d’Anneville] and
I in his chamber, where he had invited us to dine with him,
that day being the tuesday, 21st of November, his birthday,
was taken upon a sudden with a dimness of his eyes, and after
he had onely said in French “ La Volonté du Seigneur soit
faite” he grew afterwards speechless, being taken of an
apoplex, and so continued till the houre of his death, which
hap’ned the same night about halfe an houre past three in the
morning. His death hath been much regretted by the King
and also by severall noblemen here at Court.”
Contrary to his expressed wish he was buried, not at
St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, but in Westminster Abbey,
under a grave stone in the North Cross. His funeral was
on November 24th, 1672.
| His son, Sir Charles de Vic, did not long survive him, and
died unmarried in Ireland, so that that branch of the family
became extinct. Their property in Guernsey must by that
time have passed into other hands, for in a letter from Francis
Greene to Lord Hatton (Add. MSS. 29,552, f. 461), written
from St. Peter-Port on November 27th, 1674, he says :—
“ Here is Sir Charles de Wick, very busy in disposing of his
inheritance, wherein he hath made a progress to two thirds or
more, having sold all that belonged to him in the contrie to
Mr. John Andros, who is thereby become Monsieur de
Normandville.”’
Thus we see that Sir Henry de Vic’s last hours were
spent with two of his own people, and his last words were
said in his native language. All through his career we find
that his interest in and affection for his native island never
faltered ; contrary to the ideas of modern socialists and
popular agitators, he did not believe that local patriotism
D
298 AN EMINENT GUERNSEYMAN.
was incompatible with loyalty to the Crown, and although he
successfully fought for and obtained the fullest recognition of
the hereditary privileges of the Channel Islands, yet through
all their varying fortunes he remained inviolably faithful, both
to his King and to his country. I think I can best conclude
with an extract from the letter of thanks sent him by the
States of Gauernsey in 1667, of which this is a rough translation
from the original French.
‘We praise God with all our hearts, not only that He
has been pleased to grant to this island the honour of having
given you birth and descent from a notable family and from a
father who was both a good man and a worthy citizen, but
also that He has been pleased (among the other graces
with which He has adorned you), to have added that of
the love and honour of your country; so that, during the
many years in which your talents raised you to honourable
employments in the Courts of three of our Kings, you have
repeatedly asked and obtained of their Majestys, whenever so
desired, not only the renewal and amplification of our Charters
and privileges, but all other decrees and ordinances which
could contribute to the happiness of this poor island, and this
without thought of personal advantage or private gain.”
LA COTTE, ST. BRELADE’S.— VIEW OF ENTRANCE,
RECENT PRE-HISTORIC RESEARCHES IN
JERSEY.
BY ED. TOULMIN NICOLLE,
Secretary of La Société Jersiaise,
—_ v0 ——_
|.—La Cotte at S. Brelade.
Until quite recently evidence was wanting of the existence
of Paleolithic Man in these islands. It is true that flint
implements, suspected to be paleolithic, had been found from
time to time, but not having been discovered associated with
the remains either of primitive man or of those animals which
were his companions, no decisive interpretation could be
placed on the finds.
The result of the explorations carried on by the Société
Jersiaise during 1910 and 1911 has cleared away any doubt
that may have existed on this subject. The cave-dwelling
known as La Cotte at S. Brelade has at last given up its
secret and not only is there revealed to us the existence of a
Pleistocene fauna in Jersey, but human teeth, pronounced by
the highest authorities to have belonged to man of the
Neanderthal type, and the Mousterian implements he made
and used, have been unearthed.
La Cotte is situated in a cliff near Le Ouainé in §,
Brelade’s Bay. Its floor is about 60 feet above mean tide
level. Previous to excavation the cave was filled with rubble
and clay almost to within a few feet of the roof. Since 1880
flint implements had been from time to time found at the foot
of the talus. In 1905 the Société Jersiaise decided to explore
the cave, but the work had to be abandoned on account of its
dangerous nature and it was not until 1910 that a full
examination was carried out, resulting in the splendid discovery
with which the members of the Guernsey Society of Natural
Science are acquainted. The fully detailed account of the
Society’s explorations of 1910 is to be found in the Bulletin
of 1911, whilst the report on the work done in 1911, com-
pletely confirming the results of the previous year’s
examination, has just been published in the Bulletin for
1912.
In commencing operations in the summer of 1910 we were
very fortunate in alighting directly upon the hearth. Here
all around we found evidence of the presence of decayed
bone, but owing to the decalcifying properties of the clay only
[1911.]
300 RECENT PRE-HISTORIC RESEARCHES.
very small portions were able to be extracted and preserved
by infilt:ation of gelatine. With the teeth it was otherwise ;
they were in a sounder condition and particularly so the
human teeth, of which the two explorations have yielded a
dozen, belonging tothe same individual. Five belonged to
the upper jaw and seven to the lower.
These teeth are of an extremely primitive type. Their
character is remarkable on account of the fusion of the roots
in the molars. The crowns are much worn down. The
diameters of the neck and roots are almost equal to, and in
some cases exceed, those of the crown. In absolute diameter
the neck and roots of these teeth are by far the greatest yet
discovered, with the exception of those found at Krapina and
of those in the Gibraltar skull (1). The characteristics of the
teeth of Homo Breladensis afford therefore a valuable means
of assigning to a particular Paleolithic epoch other similar
finds of Prehistoric Man.
Of Pleistocene fauna the remains found have been
identified by Dr. A. Smith Woodward, of the British Museum,
as follows :— |
(1) Rhinoeeros tichorhinus (Woolly Rhinoceros), represented by a well-
preserved left upper molar and left lower premolar.
(2) Rangifer tarandus (Reindeer), a large species ; represented by a left
lower premolar, a left upper molar, right and left fourth lower pre-
molars, a part of upper premolar; by portions of antlers, fragments
of feet, and lower end of metacarpus.
(3) Cervus elaphus (large stag) ; represented by portions of skull with base
of antler.
(4) A large species of horse ; represented by teeth, upper and lower molars,
incisors and canine.
(5) A small species of horse ; represented by upper cheek teeth.
(6) Bos (probably Bos primigenius) ; represented by axial vertebra, part of
distal end of metapodial, shaft of same, a fragment of humerus,
fragments of left femur and of ulna; and by numerous teeth.
(7) Small Bovidae, represented by lower teeth in a portion of jaw, and by
fragments of mandible.
Of flint implements La Cotte has yielded a rich collection.
They are all of the Mousterian type and many show skilled
workmanship. The flint is mostly of a grey colour, but some
is of a very fine black; whilst there are a few specimens of
banded flint of great beauty. The collection is in the
Society's Museum.
The discoveries at La Cotte are not only valuable on
account of the light they throw on Paleolithic Man, but the
fauna present in this cave indicates that Jersey, at the period
when Homo Breladensis lived, formed part of the Continent.
(1) See Report of Dr. Keith and Mr. Knowles in Bulletin of Société Jersiaise for
1912 (illustrated). An elaborate study of these human documents.
FLINT IMPLEMENTS.—LA COTTE, ST. BRELADE’S.
Pholp, E.F-GUITON.
TEETH, ‘‘HOMO BRELADENSIS.”—LA COTTE, ST. BRELADE’S.
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RECENT PRE-HISTORIC RESEARCHES. BOL
The absence of remains of marine origin would lead us to
infer that in the Mousterian period the land which is called
Jersey to-day was then distant from the sea. This quite
supports the theory held by geologists that in palzolithic
times Iingland and France were united.
ll—La Cotte a la Chévre (St. Quen).
At the N.W. extremity of Jersey, not far from Grosnez
Point, there exists another prehistoric cave-dwelling. Like
the Cotte at St. Brelade its floor is about 60 feet above mean
tide level. The dimensions of the cave are from mouth to
extreme limit 33 feet; in breadth the floor ranges from 15
feet for the first half of its length to 9 feet and then tapers
off to about 4 feet, terminating in an obtuse angle.
This cave was formed by the sea, as is shown by the
formation of the original floor which consists of sea-sand,
pebbles, and a few boulders. The floor thus corresponds with
the 70 foot raised beach so conspicuous in many places around
the Jersey coast. Above this layer of sea sand was an
unctuous white clay. Next came a clay of a greyish white
tint, showing presence of bone and marking the period of
occupation. Above these three layers was a yellow gritty
clay.
' La Cotte 4 la Chévre had been partially examined in
1881, when an abundance of flint chippings and some well
worked implements were discovered, one of which is at present
in the Lukis Museum. It is a fine heart-shaped instrument
about 8 inches in length and worked on both sides. Near the
middle of the cave a shallow hearth was found and among the
ashes a piece of nodular iron pyrites, doubtless used for
striking fire. Subsequent researches by private exploring
parties brought to light other implements. It was not until
February, 1911, that the Société Jersiaise decided that a final
and systematic examination of the whole of the floor should
be made. For an account of these researches and of the final
exploration of last year, I must refer the reader to the Report
published in the current Bulletin of the Société Jersiaise.
Of osteological remains the lower jaw of a deer was
found in 1881. During the last excavation traces of bone
were everywhere manifest, but in such a state of decay as to
be undeterminable. Of the flint implements found during the
last exploration all are in the Society's Museum. The
previous finds have unfortunately been distributed in other
directions, though some have come into the Society’s possession.
With the single exception of the specimen previously alluded
302 RECENT PRE-HISTORIC RESEARCHES.
to, all these implements are worked on one side only. They
are of an Early Mousterian type, earlier than those of La
Cotte at St. Brelade, and of a rougher workmanship. They
resemble much in form a lilac leaf. According to the
opinions of M. PAbbé Brewl and M. Commont, they are
characteristic of the Harliest Mousterian period. The occu-
pation of La Cotte a la Chévre as a human dwelling must,
therefore, be anterior to that of La Cotte at St. Brelade.
l!l—Green Island, St. Clement.
A remarkable discovery of burial places of an early type
was made by the Society in October, 1911, in the small island
known as La Motte or Green Island, two hundred yards off
the coast of Jersey in St. Clement’s parish.
The Island consists of diorite rock, covered with stratified
clay, twelve to fifteen feet thick. Over this is a layer from
five to six feet thick of fine clay mixed with sand. Between
these layers can be seen a thin layer of stones running
horizontally around the island. In the spring of 1911 a mass
of clay slipped and revealed on both sides of a little promon-
tory what appeared to be small and roughly constructed kists.
On October 12th the exploration of this phenomenon was
commenced by cutting a trench across the promontory at the
level of the tops of the small structures, which proved to be
the open ends of a sepulchral chamber, consisting of two
eraves built end to end. The graves, oriented E. and W,,
were covered with capstones varying from two to three feet in
length. They resembled a diminutive allée couverte. When
the capstones were removed, the western grave, which was
6 feet in length and about 16 inches wide, was found to
resemble a modern tomb in shape. The eastern grave was of
similar dimensions, but in its centre and sunk below the level
of the larger constructions was a smaller grave about 30 inches
in length, § inches wide and one foot deep. The stone of
which these graves are constructed is the diorite of the district
and the graves are very symmetrically built. They were full
of compact clay, showing marked traces of bone. Beyond
some tiny fragments of pottery no relics of any kind were
brought to hight.
On October 16th excavation was continued a few feet
from the first discovery. Another grave was opened up, filled
with similar compact clay. At the eastern end of this grave
the end of another about 2 feet in length was found, the rest
having fallen away on the beach below. Here was discovered
firmly embedded in the clay a_ well-preserved skull of a
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RECENT PRE-HISTORIC RESEARCHES. 303
strongly dolicho-cephalic type. Two small pebble instruments
bevelled were near the skull.
Some few days afterwards two more sepulchral chambers
were found, adjoining those just mentioned, in which were
human thigh bones in a fair state of preservation and
fragmentary remains of skulls.
When the exploration is resumed it 1s to be hoped we
may be able to obtain evidence in the way of associated relics
that will permit of determining the age to which these burial-
places belong. In the Neolithic stone age it was usual to
bury in a sitting or crouched position. If one may judge by
the narrowness of the graves at Green Island, the body must
have been buried in an extended position, but on this and other
points the evidence is not conclusive and we must suspend
judgment until the completion of the exploration.
This is the first time graves of this type have been found
in this Island. They are, moreover, rare in these parts of
Europe. Recently some very similar constructions have been
unearthed in Brittany at Mané Beker-noz, in the parish of
St. Pierre-Quiberon. They are adjacent to a ruined dolmen.
Curiously enough one of these Brittany graves contains a
smaller child’s grave as at Green Island, constructed obliquely
across the floor. The objects found consist of an urn
of roughly made pottery, flint clippings unworked, bevelled
pebbles, and a bronze pin. These graves would thus appear
to belong to the Bronze Age, probably to the last period of
that civilisation.
Jersey, April, 1912.
SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE.—Since writing the above the
exploration of Green Island has been completed. In all 15
graves similar in type have been discovered, and two dolicho-
cephalic skulls, but few associated objects of importance.
I have just returned from a visit to Mané Beker-noz, and
have had the advantage of examining the graves there, as also
some of the same type at Bekerville, Quiberon. I have also seen
the relics found in these and am inclined to believe that the
graves of Green Island are of a much earlier date. But in a
small island called Thinic, near St. Pierre-Quiberon, of about
the same size as Green Island, there have been discovered 14
graves which bear a stronger resemblance in type to those of
Green Island. It is impossible to here discuss the question.
A further report will shortly be made to the members of our
Society on the subject and it is to be hoped that after full consi-
deration we may be able to arrive at some definite conclusions.
May 30th, 1912. | Ke N
“ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ?”
A Statement of the opinions of Naturalists on the subject as
gathered from a Correspondence in the ‘‘Zoologist”’ of 1872. |
BY BASIL T. ROWSWELL.
Read ut the Monthly Meeting of the Society, Nov. 15th, 1911,
0
A FEW months ago Mr. Pitts put into my hands the volume
of the Zovlogist for 1872, and glancing through its pages I
found it contained a number of Ornithological Notes from
Guernsey contributed by Mr. Cecil Smith, the author of
The Birds of Guernsey and the Neighbouring Islands, Al-
derney, Sark, Herm and Jethou, a useful book published in
1879; and by [Miss] C. B. Carey, of Candie. I found in
addition that the volume also contained a very interesting
correspondence which arose out of a query of Miss Carey’s
in the May Number as to whether Guernsey birds were
British. Several gentlemen, well known in the World of
Natural History, took part in the correspondence which ran
through six numbers of the Zoologist. Believing that
extracts from these letters, showing the individual opinion
of the writers on the subject, would prove interesting to the
Members of our Society generally, and not to those of the
Ornithological Section alone, I went carefully through the
correspondence with a view to giving, at one of the monthly
meetings, the gist of what those men- of science thought
about it.
As you will see from what follows the sore point was
that of Geographical position. The Channel Islands, geo-
graphically considered, are certainly more French than
English as any map of HKurope very plainly declares, while
occasionally in unusually clear weather it is not necessary
even to produce a map to prove this. On such days (and
they are all too rare) what a magnificent panorama we
Guernsey people are privileged to feast our eyes upon.
From our central position the whole of the Norman Archi-
pelago les spread out in beauty before us. Probably from
nowhere else can it be seen to such perfection. But the view
[1911.]
lad
ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ? 305
also includes a long stretch of land which we know to be
part of “la belle rates,” and then is borne in upon us, as
perhaps at no other time, the fact of our nearness to French
soil. We look in vain for a bit of old England ; while here,
close at hand, almost within touching distance as it seems,
are the smiling cliffs and dales of a land with which we do
not claim nationality much as we may love it as a holiday
resort. No, we Channel Islanders, I take it, are one and
all proud to be part and parcel of the great British Empire—
proud to be natives of what are, if fragments only, the oldest
bits of the English Crown.
But I am Y digressing and must proceed with the subject
matter of this paper. Miss Constance Bertie Carey who
originated the correspondence, and is often quoted by Cecil
Smith in the “ Birds of Guernsey,” lived at Candie and was
the youngest daughter of Sir Stafford Carey who was Bailiff
of Guernsey from 1845 to 1883. Miss Carey, who was only
18 years of age at the time and evidently a very promising
young Naturalist, died on January 7th, 1877, at the pre-
mature age of 23 years.
Miss Carey’s letter to the Zovlogist (May, 1872,
page 3,066) ran as follows :—
‘“* Are Guernsey Birds British ?—This seems to me to be rather
a puzzling question, because in some respects the birds differ from
the British; I mean not individually, but that birds. are found
here which are rare in Britain, and common birds in Britain are
not always found here. This is rather important, because if it is
decided that Guernsey birds are not British, those shot here can-
not appear in British collections. It all depends whether the
Channel Islands are within the imaginary boundary beyond which
all birds that are shot are not considered British; then this
imaginary line cannot extend equally round Britain, for Calais
is nearer England than we are here, and so French birds would
be British. I shall be glad of a solution to my difficulty.
“C. B. CAREY.”
To this the Editor of the Zoologist (the late Edward
Newman) added: “I shall be glad to receive opinions from
more competent Ornithologists before I give my own.’
The first reply to Miss Carey's query came from the
Rev. O. Pickard-Cambridge, of Bloxworth Rectory, Bland-
ford, and appeared in the June ‘“ Zoologist’’ (page 3,109).
He considered it, not a naturalists but a collector's question,
and thought the matter would be easy of solution if an
agreement could be arrived at as to a definition of the word
“ British.” ** British” might mean found in a state of nature,
first, in. the British Empire, or, sccond/y, merely in Great
Britain and Iveland, with their. adjacent islets. As no col-
306 ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ?
lectors that ever he heard of used the word in the first of
these meanings, 1f the latter were the one meant it only
remained to ask whether, geographically, the Channel Islands
were part of England. In his opinion— geographically the
Channel Islands belonged to the French mainland. Miss
Carey’s imaginary boundary line was an idea quite new
to him. Of course the question whether a bird or insect
was British or not had a considerable amount of legitimate
and scientific interest, but the extreme to which “ collectors ”
had carried it had done great mischief to the pursuit
of Natural History generally. What could be more absurd,
from a scientificpomt of view, than that a bird, for in-
stance, which, on account of its abundance on the south-
ern side of the Channel, might be procured there for six-
pence, should command some fabulous sum when found on
the northern side, and merely because of its rare occurrence
there.
Miss Carey continued the discussion the following month
(Zoologist, July, page 3,145) and criticized Mr. Pickard-
Cambridge’s definition of “ British” as “merely Great
Britain and the adjacent islets,’ by asking if the Shetland
Isles were included in the definition, and added, “though
the Channel Islands are nearer to France than to England,
they are nearer to Ingland than the Shetland Isles are to
Scotland, so that if a line extended equally round Great
Britain, which included the Shetland Isles, the Channel
Islands would be included also.” Miss Carey’s idea of the
imaginary line was that it should be at a certain equal dis-
tance all round Great Britain, and that either all objects
obtained within that line should be considered British,
whether the land was under foreign rule or not; or that
-where the line came across foreign countries it should not
take effect, so that although Calais might be within the line,
yet because 1t was not part of the British empire the birds
and other Natural History objects collected there would not
be called British.
Mr. Pickard-Cambridge, replying to Miss Carey’s eriticism
(Zoologist, August, page 3,183) regretted his answer had
not been made clearer. He first assumed, hypothetically,
that by “ British” people in general meant “ found in Great
Britain and Ireland and their adjacent islets”; but the
inference from what followed was, that nothing could be con-
sidered “ British” in a scientific sense except the productions
of Great Britain, and such islands as belonged geographically
tv it. Under this rule, he considered, that the actual distance
ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ? 307
of an islet from the mainland was but of secondary importance.
The Shetlands he looked upon as certainly part of Great
Britain in a geographical sense, as in the same sense he held
the Channel Islands to be part of France, and he conceived
that French naturalists should include the productions of
the Channel Islands in their general works on French
Natural History. He concluded with the suggestion that
to allay the fears of Channel Islanders about being “ left
out in the cold” by both French and English naturalists, a
simple solution of all difficulties would be, as it seemed to
him, for British Naturalists always to include the Channel
Islands in their works under such titles as “ Birds (or what
not) of Great Britain, Lreland, and the Channel Islands.”
In that way the word “ British’ would retain its legitimate
signification and no one would be misled.
“Clermont” [35, Hill Street, Berkeley Square], in the
same No. of the Zovlogist joined the ranks of the dis-
putants but changed the question into: “ dre the Channel
Islands British?” We held that anyone speaking as a
naturalist, and wishing to use accurate terms, would call an
animal or a plant British which was indigenous to the geo-
graphical group of the British Islands. Defining the British
Islands as including ‘‘numerous smaller islands at varying
distances from the coasts of the larger islands, but always
nearer to some part of those coasts than to any part of
the continent, he adds, “but this group does not include
the Channel Islands which are British politically only. By
nature and according to Geography they are as much French
as the Scilly Islands and Orkneys are British, so that their
natural productions must, as I think, be assigned to the
French province.” . . . It can only be the desire to magnify
the zoological and botanical treasures of this country, and
to enrich their cabinets, which tempts English collectors
arbitrarily, and without regard to the geographical claims
of France, to annex the Channel Islands to the British
group.”
In an Editorial note at the end of Mr. Pickard-Cam-
bridge’s second letter, extracts from which I was reading
two minutes ago, Mr. Newman said he most certainly ac-
cepted Mr. Cambridge’s “simple solution” that British
naturalists should include the Channel Islands in their works ;
botanists, so far as he knew, had done so already and the
plan seemed to have met with general acceptance ; therefore
as regarded the literature of British Natural History there
appeared no great difficulty about birds.
308 ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ?
This Editorial note called forth the displeasure of Mr.
Edwin Birchall, of Leeds, who, in the November number of
the Zovlogist (page 3,304) went into the matter at some length.
He regretted that Mr. Newman should have given even a
qualified approval to the proposal for including the pro-
ductions of the Channel Islands in the British fauna, being
unable to see that any useful end would be served thereby,
and the revolutionizing of their lists would be a real incon-
venience which, he thought, they should not be called upon to
undergo without good cause being shown. If the productions
of Guernsey and Jersey were to be added to the British lists
because those islands were British possessions, we must also,
he contended, admit the productions of Gibraltar, Malta and
Heligoland. Heligoland, in fact, in his opinion, had a better
claim to be considered British than the Channel Islands, the
sea separating it from England being everywhere shallow, and
there could be no doubt that long after the formation of the
English Channel there was a land communication with the
Continent across the space where the German Ocean now
rolled, of which land the speck called Heligoland was the last
remnant. Although with few, and those mostly doubtful
exceptions, all the animals and plants of the British Islands
were identical with Continental species ; still the sea was a
definite boundary, and species which had been subjected for
long periods to insular conditions had in many cases acquired
peculiarities which marked them as strictly British. The
insects of the Channel Islands, said Mr. Birchall, did not
exhibit British peculiarities; they did not vary from the
form of the same species in Normandy and in other parts of
France, and had no connection with British insects, except as
being also members of the [Huropean fauna. Waxing
prophetic, Mr. Birchall went on to say that “should Mr.
Cambridge’s ‘simple solution’ be adopted, unless I greatly
underrate the energy and intelligence of our collectors and
dealers, so prolific would the Channel Islands be found (in
Lep:doptera at all events) that I should not be surprised if the
whole European fauna, of some six thousand species, found its
way through the side-door it is proposed to open. Out lists
would then resemble a comet, the insects of Great Britain and
Ireland representing the nucleus, those of the Channel Islands
its portentous tail!”
Was this meant to be complimentary or otherwise to the
Channel Islands? Miss Carey evidently looked upon the
remark as complimentary to the islands, for in the December
Zovlogist (page 3,324) she wrote to the effect that she thought
ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ? 309
insect collectors would be only too glad of the chance to
enlarge their collections till they equalled all other Huropean
collections together, from the rich stores to be found in an
area so comparatively small as that of the Channel Islands
instead of having to go all over Hurope for the purpose.
She thanked Mr. Pickard-Cambridge for his solution of the
vexed question, “ Are Guernsey Birds British ?” which she
considered the right one, viz., that British Naturalists should
include these islands in their works and title them as
of Great Britain, Ireland and the Channel Islands, ineluding
the Isle of Man. This, she believed, was the way the ee
of Parliament put it, and added, “ Here we are put before the
Isle of Man which nobod y doubts to be British.”
The lengthy correspondence ended in this number of the
Magazine (December, page 3,324) with the Editor’s pro-
nouncement on the subject as follows :—
“The question introduced to our notice by Miss Carey has gradually
assumed a wider range, until Mr. Birchall in the November Zoologist
has totally altered it, in this manner, ‘Are the Channel Islands British?’
and has charged me with giving ‘a qualified assent to the affirmative.’
My friend has also chosen insects, instead of birds, as the branch of
Natural History for enforcing his views. However numerous the lines
of argument opened up by these deviations from the original propo-
sition, I believe they will all be comprehended in the following
formula :—‘ Seeing that all our botanists include the Channel Islands
in the British Flora, ought we, or ought we not, to include them in our
British Fauna.’ My own opinion has not been very strongly in favour
of either course; but I have felt a leaning towards a uniformity of
practice, a leaning which has increased, and has become more decided
with each successive expression of opinion, until Mr. Birchall, the last
in order of time, settles the matter to my entire satisfaction, and I am
fully prepared to include the Channel Islands in the British Fauna, or
more correctly speaking, in the Fauna of the United Kingdom.
Should the extension of our Fauna to the Channel Islands
induce our entomologists to adopt a uuiform nomenclature, that alone
would be a sufficient reison for adopting the course suggested. But
there is another good that is certain to result. We havea multitude
of young entomologists who possess abundant means, and who are
anxious to obtain species that they have failed to capture on English
soil. I will particularly mention two, Daplidice [Bath White] and
Lathonia [Queen of Spain Fritillary]: they willingly give 25s. or 30s.
apiece for specimens Of either of these, provided the dealer will assert
that they are ‘British’; and there aie swarms of dealers who will
gladly supply any number of specimens on the required terms and
conditions. I cannot take upon myself to read a moral lecture to the
impostors or the dupes. I fancy it would be hard to resist the tempta-
tion of selling copies of the Zoologist at two pounds each if there were
buyers foolish enough to give such a price, even supposing I were
disposed to assert there were some fancied superiority in the coveted
copy. I italicise the word fancied, because there is no real difference
between one copy and another of the Zoologist, or between English and
European specimens of the butterflies in question. Let us suppose
Guernsey Daplidices, by the amended usage, become British. Why
310 ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ?
next year I should receive the following note from Mr. Birchall
himself :---‘ How are you off for Daplidice? I have taken a few
hundreds in Guernsey this summer, and will send you a boxfull for
distribution on your Friday evenings if you like; and, by the way, I
have lots of Lathonias, if you care for them; also a score or two of
D. Euphorbie. How many shall L send of each?’ What would
be the effect on the dealers, the buyers and the sellers ? A bombshell
bursting among them could not produce greater consternation. After
the first panic, reducing the quotations «f Daplidices and Lathonias
to zero, they would probably look upwards, and finally settle at three-
pence or sixpence each. The little island of Heligoland is introduced
by Mr. Birchall as a kind of stumbling-block in the way of such an
arrangement: by all means let us inelude the stumbling-block also.
Seeing that my friend can show that Heligoland is British in the same
sense as Guernsey and Jersey—and prove that it is included in the
‘United Kingdom,’ as intended by our Acts of Parliament,—by all
manner of means let us call it British, and incorporate its Fauna with
that of Great Britain properly so called.* With regard to Gibraltar
and Malta, we had better defer the question of annexing their Fauna
until botanists have annexed their Flora, when we may with considerable
show of propriety consider such x step. It seems incumbent on those
who advocate the adoption with our Fauna of a different course
from that universally accepted for our Flora, to state explicitly the
¢erounds for maintaining such a usage. Does any other country in the
world adopt such a course? Does any country in the world consider
its plants indigenous and the creatures that feed on them exotic ?
But my friend says ‘the sea is a definite boundary’; true, yet this
argument would not only eliminate the Channel Islands, but would
cut off all the Scottish islands, the Isle of Man, Ireland, and even the
Isle of Wight.”
EDWARD NEWMAN.
And so ended the controversy, ladies and gentlemen,
at any rate as far as this volume of the Zoologist is
concerned.
As regards my own opinion on the subject I have very
little to say, but I should like to state that I incline to Mr.
Pickard-Cambridge’s view of the matter and think his
“simple solution ” the proper course to be followed by both
English and French Naturalists who may turn their atten-
tion to the Channel Islands. In scientific matters sentiment
should be made to stand on one side and facts be stared
squarely in the face.
Geographically considered the Channel Islands are cer-
tainly more French than English, and if there be any
difference in their Fauna and Flora one would naturally,
as it seems to me, expect to find it more nearly agreeing
with that of Normandy and Brittany than with that of
England, just as we should as naturally expect the pro-
ductions of the Scilly Islands and the Isle of Wight to more
closely resemble the productions of England than of France.
* Heligoland, of course, as we all are aware, is no longer British. It was
acquired by Germany in 1890,
a $
ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ? 311
If instances be asked for of the Channel Islands
“natural” connection with the French mainland and with
southern rather than northern waters, I may cite the occur-
rence here of the Ormer and of Scyllarus Arctus, neither
of which species I believe si found on the Inglish side
of the Channel. And in botany we have the Dwarf Adders
Tongue fern, the little Quzllwort (Isoctes Hystrix) and the
Hares-Tail Grass, all denizens of southern latitudes. And
there is the rare Tenby Snail which properly belongs to
the Canary Islands, but which, to quote from Mr. Marquand,
“lives in thousands on the green sward at Vazon Bay. As
a British shell it 1s confined to a single spot in England,
one in Wales and one in Ireland, so that it belongs to the
aristocracy of our molluscan fauna.” In Ornithology, how-
ever, [ am not aware that any birds visit these islands which
are not known in Great Britain, though perhaps some are
more common with us than in England.
But the Channel Islands ArE British—the oldest bits
of the British Crown—and because of that fact, as I think,
British Naturalists might with reason include the productions
of the little Norman Archipelago i in works on British Natural
History, being careful, however, to state the fact on the
title page of the work in some such form as that suggested
by Mr. Pickard-Cambridge, viz., ‘ Birds (or what not) of
Great Britain, Ireland, and the Channel Islands.”
That some scientific writers and compilers take it for
eranted that the Channel Islands should be included in
works dealing essentially with Great Britain and Ireland,
and that too without any mention of the fact on the title-
page, I may call attention to “ British Rainfall,’ an annual
publication which always gives the rainfall of these islands
in its pages. Its title page is worded: “On the Distribution
of Rain in Space and Time over the British Isles during
the Year . . . as recorded by nearly 5,900 Observers
in Great Britain and Ireland, and discussed with articles
apo enous branches of Rainfall work, by Hugh Robert
ill.
And again the Channel Islands are always included in
the summary of the previous day’s weather over the British
Islands published in the Daily Weather Report of the
Meteorological Office, London. For example, the Notes on
Tuesday, September. 5th, last ran: “ During yesterday
temperature was very irregular over the British Isles.
At Harrogate it did not “exceed 57 deg., while Bath
reached 79 deg., and Jersey 88 deg.” And on Thursday,
ole ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ?
September 14th: “ During yesterday temperature reached
74 deg. at Jersey, but in most other localities it remained
below 65 deg.; at a number of stations the maxima were
54 deg. to 60 deg. Rain fell in nearly all parts of the
Kingdom, as a rule in very small quantities, only Dover
and London registering half-an-inch. Jersey reports 732
hours of bright sunshine, and Douglas 7 hours, but generally
the records were very small, none in many instances.”
Again on Saturday, October 14th, the remarks included
the following: “ Rain has fallen in many parts of the
kingdom, heavily in some south-eastern and southern local-
ities. At Dover the measurement was 1:03 in., and at Jersey,
where a thunderstorm occurred, as much as 2°42 in.
And just to give one more case in point let me mention
that well-known work on English Botany—Sowerby. The
Channel Islands certainly figure in this standard work and
yet its title page reads: “ English Botany ; or, Coloured
figures of British Plants.” Some of the “ British Plants”
indeed figured in Sowerby are not found in the British
Islands properly so called at all.
On the other hand and in perfect agreement with Mr.
Pickard-Cambridge’s “ simple solution ” a book was published
in 1867, the author of which, Samuel Octavius Gray, worded
his title page: * British Sea-weeds : An Introduction to the
Study of the Marine Alew of Great Britain, Ireland and
the Channel Islands.” And in 1879 the Rev..W. A. Leigh-
ton, B.A., wrote a work entitled, “ The Lichen-flora of Great
Britain, Ireland and the Channel Islands.”
A few days ago while referring to a paper on “ Crustacea,”
by our friend Mr. Joseph Sinel, in one of the early volumes
of our Society's Transactions (1889), 1 chanced upon the follow-
ing statement which speaks for itself. After quoting from the
Zovlogist and other authorities Mr. Sinel continued: “ In
speaking of * British Waters” I must here remind my friends
that at the time of the publication of the above records these
included the whole of the [English Channel: the lines laid
down at one of the recent meetings of the British Association
now place these islands [the Channel Islands] beyond the
boundary.” In spite of this, however, the “Ray Society”
has quite recently published a work entitled “A Monograph
of the British Annelids,” by Professor William C. McIntosh,
which contains some beautiful coloured illustrations of marine
worms found at Guernsey, Herm and Jersey !
In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, I hope you wilt
agree with me that in spite of the fact that, considered
ARE GUERNSEY BIRDS BRITISH ? Sts
geographically, the Channel Islands are certainly more
French than English and should from their natural position
be included in hooks on French Natural History, there are
also very good reasons for including them in all books on
British Natural History as well, in the way suggested by
the Rev. Pickard-Cambridge with whose “simple solution ”
I have great sympathy.
THE RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY FOR THE
YEAR 1911.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
0
ALTHOUGH not as wet as 1910, 1911 was wetter than the
average. The total was 9 inches less than that of 1910, and
0-68 above the average.
In this the rule, as far as one has been established, of the
driest year in the period being followed by two successive
years of greater rainfall the second of which is the highest
of the period and being followed by a considerable drop, has
again proved correct.
As we have now passed the years of minimum and
maximum falls, we may expect a slight increase for two years,
but no very great difference from the average.
As regards the detail of the year, the months range
themselves as 6 dry and 6 wet. June was the only wet
summer month, and May, July and August were very dry.
October, November and December were very wet, and
contributed together 55°/, of the year’s total instead of 37°...
December was the wettest month with 8°33 inches. This
was just twice its average (4°16 inches), but was not a record,
as this month had a previous record of 11°47 inches. The
three wettest months gave progressively increasing falls ;
thus October gave 5°4 inches; November 6°7 inches, and
December, 8°3 inches ; a total of 20 inches.
Of the last 100 days of the year no fewer than 82 were
wet.
As regards the distribution of rainfall over the year,
June, October, November and December contributed 66°/, of
the total, leaving only 34°/, for the remaining eight months.
May and August gave each 1°6°/, or together 3°2°/, instead
of 12°/,. These were the least wet.
There have been changes in the stations contributing
returns. For the moment we have no returns from King’s
Mills, these having ceased at the end of August. On the
other hand I am now getting regular returns from St. George
(1911.]
O
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY Silko
(an old station revived), and Mont Saint. No total can be
given for these three stations, but the (Table II.) gives the
monthly totals of completed months.
I consider that the results obtained this year are, in the
main, consistent with those of former years, but there are
differences. As compared with last year the southerly and
westerly stations are nearer to the quantities collected in
town and those to the north have diminshed. This, of
course, 1s largely due to the direction of the prevailing winds.
The variation amounts to 9 inches and the range in wet days
is 38;-- -
The island, as a whole, has had a mean fall of 334 inches,
and the fall at Hautnez fairly represents the mean of all the
stations.
Mr. Rowswell has handed me in returns from Alderney
and Sark, as well as those taken with a gauge on the roof of
the Library. From these returns it will be seen that the
Guille-Allés roof has collected 35°55 inches, about 14 inches
less than at St. Martin’s Road. Sark has had 10 inches less
and Alderney 7 inches less. The detail of the months’ totals
are consistent.
TABLE I,
RAINFALL AT ST. MARTIN’S ROAD, 1911.
Inches,
Rainfall. Previous Grcatest Proportion
Records. Teaves of the month’s| Wet
ae eee Sore eRe fallstothe | Days
Monthly Ts. Monthly Tis. aye year’s total.
o e er
a fas} S a :
Months. % é oe bp re = = B oi
in. | 82 |eyee| 2 | 8g 5 me] gd | &@ | a] &
eee eee See i) a | BP) Be lease
>
o= ss = <q a —
January ..| 2°04 | 3°74 | —1-70 | 7:90 | 0°79 | 0-74 | 11th oo | 10°3 | 18] 19
oo" .| 1°69 | 2°63 | —0°94 | 6:19 | 0°08 | 0°41 | 24th 4°5 M2 NTS aS
March . 2°67 | 2°54 | +0°13 | 6 44 | 0°34 | 0°46 | 17th 1°3 69} 23) 16
April 2°79 | 2°33 | +0°46 | 5°13 | 0°23 | 0°65 | Sth Td 6°3 | 20] 14
May...... 0°60 | 2°09 | —1°49 | 4°64 | 0°02 | 0°40 | 38rd 1°6 5'6 Cia
June 4°02 | 2°05 1:97 | 5°03 | 0°43 | 1°69 8th | 10°8 5°D | 14] 11
July 0°88 | 2°12 | —1°24 | 6°58 | 0°12 | 0°64 | 25th 2°3 5:8 Hy ad
August ..| 0°59 | 2°37 | —1°78 | 6°01 | 0°33 | 0°30 | 28th 1°6 6°5 6| 12
September| 1°35 | 2°99 | —1°64 | 9°39 | 0:25 | 0°23 | 23rd 3°6 8°2 9| 14
October ..| 5°42 | 4:93 OASe He O4 | 1-99 | 1-39.) 27th: 14-7.) 11:4.) 23. 39
November | 6°73 | 4°48 2°25 | 9°08 | 0°88 | 1°244 T1lth | 18:2 | 12°56 | 25} 19
December | 8°33 | 4:16 | + 4:17 |/11°47 | 0°80 | 0°77 | 22nd | 22°4 | 13°6 | 28] 19
The Year. .|37°11 |36°48 | +0 68 [56°96 |25:04 | 1°69 | June |100°0 |100°0 | 193} 180
GUERNSEY.
RAINFALL OF
316
| TABLE I],
DISTRIBUTION OF RAINFALL OVER THE ISLAND 1911.—Inches.
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RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE III.
317
PREVIOUS YEARS OF LOWEST RAINFALL WITH THE 5 YEARS
| BEFORE AND AFTER THE MINIMA.
ain:
56
46
36
1853
34°98
1854 | 1855 | 1856
30°42 | 30°36
1857
1858
1859
43°41
1860
——_
48°04
1861 1862
1863
34°47
1865
43°30
1867 | 1868
44°43
37 O07
1871
36°26
1872
56°96
1873 | 1874
37°72
1875.
1903
40°88
1905 | 1906
37°72. |
1907
46°16
37°11
GUERNSEY.
RAINFALL OF
318
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‘SNOILLVLIS AUSNYAND LV TIVANIVY ~
THE SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY FOR THE
ca YEAR 1911.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
THE YEAR 1911 was a sunny year, its total, 2,121 hours,
being 348 hours in excess of that of 1910, and practically
200 hours over the average of 18 years.
The year has had the effect of increasing the average
from 1,912 to 1,923 hours.
Five years’ totals have exceeded 2,000 hours (see table
2), and of those only one, 1899, has exceeded the total of 1911.
The year is therefore the second best year we have expe-
rienced, as far as the records go.
The year is also remarkable in that it has given the
highest monthly total so far reached. July, which had a
previous record of 340 hours, and was the record among the
months, has beaten its own record by 42 hours, and we now
have as the highest monthly total, 382 hours. :
Although this is the only record among the months, no
fewer than nine have exceeded their averages.
The three months showing deficits are February, March
and October.
July’s total distributed over the 31 days gives a mean of
12°6 hours. The average being 8°9 hours it follows that July
gave a daily excess of practically 34 hours.
The five months, May to September inclusive, comnniwred
68°/, of the year’s total, hence were responsible for the
year’s surplus.
May, June and July were without a sunless day, but the
winter months exceeded their average sunless days and left
the year, its excess notwithstanding, with 59 or 5 more than
is usual.
Experience has shown that 45°/, of the year’s 'possible
sunshine is rarely passed. This year we have recorded 48 °/.,
while the highest record reached 50 °/,. In table I. it will
be seen that five of the 12 months were over 50°/,; three
ver60 °/, and July reached 79 °..
{1911.]
SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY. 321
In last year’s paper I gave a table showing the
progressive reduction in the averages of the summer months,
the loss being, in 7 years, 13 hours for May ; 33 for June; 18
for July ; 12 for August, and 5 September.
I have not repeated the table this year as it is in the
possession of the members, but I may state that owing to the
increased sunshine. the averages have increased and_ the
months have gained as follows: May, 2 hours; July, 6
hours; August, 2, and September, 3 hours.
322 SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE I.
DURATION OF SUNSHINE AND
Campbell-Stokes
SUNSHINE.
Monthly Totals. P eee ot the mee
Months.
B =|
1911. 2 8 a6 | iit | ses $8 | lg. | Ss
A eae uae ae
mae ee m= ais
| Hours. | Hours. | Hours. | | Hours.| Hours.
JaANUary ....| | GSoh 58°7 82°5 | 26 22 31 22 19
February ..) 74°5 84:5. 1 16-9) 27) 30 eae Deby aang)
March...... | 122°5 | 147-2 | 928:4 | 33 | 40 62 3:9 ag
Aprile sone 197-6 | 195°3 | 2608 | 48 | 47 | 63 | 65 | 65
Mayon ae 277-0 | 250:0 | 339-4 | 159 | 53. lege 89) g2
ARUN, Saee cc | 255°0 | 2480 | 314-4 | 53 | 52 65 85 | 8:3
July ewe | 382-0 -|2275°8 | 382°0*| 79 57 | 19:2 126 ees
August ....| 285°6 | 2446 | 3256 | 64 | 55 73 el Ta
September... 236°8 188°6 269°4 63 D0 72 79 | 6:3
October ....| 88°'7 | 114°0 | 1545 | 27 || 35 46 28 237
November... 72:0 69°9 | 113-9 | 27 | 26 41 A. oe
December ..) 61:0 46°2 leo e25 18 38 Lag 1-4
The Year .. 2121-0 | 1922-0 a ° Ps ae) 50 Sole GD
SUNSHINE
TABLE I.
PREVALENCE OF CLOUD.
=
Recording Instrument.
OF GUERNSEY.
323
SUNSHINE.
Proportion
of the
Year’s Total.
Difference
between
1st and 2nd a
Columns. &
19lte 3S
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Sunniest Days.
Sunless
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ap
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1911.
S Date.
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| 14°5 5th
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Previous Record.
CLOUD.
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1911. <
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from 1800 to 1900
from 1900 to 2000
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GUERNSEY.
TABLE IT.
@ore reve wee
SUNSHINE OF
1896—1897—1901 —1907 ....
1904—1908—1909
ESO canoe
1899...
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.. 1895—1898—1899—1900—1906—1911 ....
.. 1894—1902—1903—1905—1910 ....
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"SYUOTAT
ANNUAL TOTALS OF SUNSHINE IN GUERNSEY, 1894 to 1911.
Lowest ...
5 years ..
4 years ..
3 years ..
6 years ..
Highest ....
324
‘SaYOOdaA ANTHSNOS
‘HU WTaAV
NOTES ON THE RAINFALL AT SARK AND
ALDERNEY DURING THE YEAR 1911.*
BY BASIL T. ROWSWELL.
In the matter of weather the year 1911 will be memorable
because of more than one unexpected development. In a
sense it was a year of surprises—some pleasant, others
unpleasant.
For instance, after a mild winter, and when the season
being so far advanced (according to the calendar), any possi-
bility of damaging cold occurring seemed altogether impos-
sible, we were visited by a burst of wintry weather of
extraordinary severity for the time of year. This was in the
early days of April when blizzard-like snowstorms swept over
the Bailiwick and blocked many of the country roads in all the
islands, while frosts of mid-winter intensity gripped the land on
several days. It was a splendid illustration of the well-known
proverb which has it that April, normally a genial period,
can, upon occasion, provide weather as severe as or even worse
than any experienced in the winter months proper.
Then followed one of the most perfect summers as
regards heat and dry sunny weather that anyone could
possibly wish for. We had been treated to so many unsea-
sonable summers—cold, gloomy and wet—in recent years,
that we were not in any way prepared for such a delightful
time as the summer of 1911 had in store for us. It took us as
much by surprise, but of course in a pleasantly different way,
as did the terrible if short-lived cold snap in April. New
records for heat and drought were established at many places
in England, and the wonderful period did not pass away
without leaving its mark on Channel Island weather.
A great heat blast on Friday, September 8th, made that
day, both as regards maximum temperature (88°6 deg.) and
mean (74°6 deg.) the hottest day at Les Blanches since
observations were begun in January, 1894. July, August and
September also, the three months covered by the hot and dry
* The references in these Notes to the Rainfall Station at Les Blanches are
included for the sake of comparing the Sark and Alderney figures with those at a
Guernsey Station.—B. T. R.
[1911.]
326 NOTES ON THE RAINFALL.
spell turn out to be the warmest and driest three months of
the name in the 18 years, 1894-1911.
At the end of September, such had been the combined
effect of the prolonged summer drought and of the dry spring
months, the year’s rainfall was the smallest at Les Blanches of
the last. 18 years. The figures are :— )
January to September, 1911 ................... eee 14°68 in.
Previous driest January to September (1908) ............ 16°55 in.
Previous wettest January to September (1897) ......... 29°43 in.
Average of the 10 years, 1894-1903 ooo... cece ccecee cesses 22°08 in.
But a great change was at hand—had in fact set in before
the advent of October, and from being very dry the weather
became very wet. The rains began on September 19th and
continued with such persistence to the very end of the year,
that out of 104 days no fewer than 84 had a measurable
rainfall at Les Blanches. October was very wet, November
still more so, while December proved the second wettest
month on record at the Guernsey station already quoted— that
is since January, 1894. The excessive wetness of both
November and December as compared with the previous
ten months is well brought out by the fact that of the twelve
months’ total rainfall at Les Blanches (34°74in.), half was
measured in the last nine weeks and five days of the year.
As regards temperature, 1911 was the warmest year since
1899; it is, in fact, with 1898 (which had a similar mean
temperature) the second warmest year on record at St.
Martin’s since 1894. In the matter of rainfall 1911
was, the previous year excepted, the wettest twelve months
since 1904. It will doubtless be remembered that the year
before last (1910) was one of unusually heavy rainfall. At
St. Martin’s (Les Blanches) the total reached the very
big figure of 45°54 in.
January (1911) was a dry period, and as early in the
year as the 12th of that month, a spell of weather giving
deficient rainfall set in. It began on the same day all over
the Bailiwick and developed into both a “ partial” and an
“absolute” drought * at Sark and Alderney. At Guernsey
(Les Blanches) we escaped the “absolute ” phase—that is we
did not attain unto 15 consecutive and absolutely dry days.
In both of the smaller islands all the dates in connection with
this interval of drought are the same, for the returns supplied
by Capt. Henry and Mr. Picot show that at each station
it ended on February 17th, and that the rainless period
* See page 332 for a definition of the terms ‘‘absolute” and “ partial ” drought.
NOTES ON THE RAINFALL. Bile
(19 days) began and ended respectively on January 26th and
February 13th. At Guernsey we experienced only 14 abso-
lutely dry days while the “partial” drought was of 33 days’
duration against 37 at Sark and Alderney.
A protracted spell of broken, unsettled weather now
followed, but as heavy rainfalls were few and far between the
accumulated total for the year continued deficient. As a
matter of fact, indeed, as far as Gruernsey (Les Blanches) is
concerned, none of the year’s rainy intervals was sufficiently
wet to bring the total up to the normal until the advent
of December, such was the effect of the very dry summer
experienced.
At the end of February the two smaller islands ran each
other very closely, the total for the two months _ being
2°58 in. at Sark and 2°63 in. at Alderney, Guernsey (as usual)
with 3°37 in. taking the lead. Although the rainfall of the
three islands is always in general agreement and_ easily
comparable, interesting differences occur from time to time
which make the tabulation and discussion of the returns an
instructive study.
On March 6th, a sunless and wet day at Guernsey, and
where rain fell continuously from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to the
amount of 0°28in. at Les Blanches, only 0:06in. was
measured at Sark, while Alderney reported the day as having
been perfectly dry. Mr. Picot recorded a thunderstorm at
Alderney during the evening of the 15th, and lightning was
observed in this island. At Jersey, by the way, a severe
electrical disturbance with heavy hail storms occurred after
sunset of the same day. At St. Aubin’s the rainfall amounted
to 0°15 in.
April began well as regards temperature. We thought
we had done with wintry weather in any shape or form and
were congratulating ourselves on having enjoyed a mild season
when cold of such bitter intensity for the time of year
developed as probably to create a record in local meteoro-
Jogical annals. Fortunately for crops and vegetation gene-
rally, the keenest part of the terrible wintry ‘blast. with its
accompaniment of ice and snow was of short duration, for the
new spring growth was well advanced when, without warning,
the cold snap rushed over the Channel Islands and wrought
havoc amongst the young and tender shoots of trees, shrubs
and crops in all directions. The worst day was Thursday, the
6th. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) the mean temperature
actually worked out below the freezing point, viz. at 30:2 deg.,
and the maximum and minimum respectively was 32°6 deg. and
328 NOTES ON THE RAINFALL.
28:'2deoe.! The islands on this day were literally buried
in snow drifts and bound fast in the iron grip of a severe
frost. . |
Writing from Sark a correspondent to the Kvening Press
said: “On Wednesday the 5th, snow fell during the day.
Towards evening it began to freeze. In the night snow fell
continually, making it several inches deep. In places where
the snow had been driven by the wind there was a depth
of thirty inches. On Thursday the snowstorm continued,
some very heavy showers falling during the morning... . . :
Sark had not experienced such weather for the last sixteen or
eighteen years. The snowstorm practisally ruined the flowers
that were so unusually advanced.”
From Alderney the report for Wednesday, the 5th, was
“oreat snowfall at night,” and for the following day, “* more
snow.”
The snowfall spread itself over three days—4th to the
6th—as shown in the following Table where the amounts
(in water) measured in the different islands are given. It
will be noticed by the way that no precipitation was recorded
at Sark for the 4th, and that altogether much less snow fell in
that island than at Guernsey and Alderney.
GUERNSEY SARK ALDERNEY
(Les Blanches). (Vallée du Creux). (Le Huret).
April 4th (Tuesday) ...... O-13in. 0.6... mm ... _-+ 0°09 mm,
5 oth (Wednesday)... 0:291n...c.. 0-10 ins ie 0°42 in.
3» Oth ( Phurcday) ...0cSame ae: 0:2 6sltie sae 0°15 in.
Dotalsi.. ve O:60 ainetercer: 0°36 Imi ee (0°66 in.
As roughly 0°08 in. of water represents one inch of snow,
the total depth at Guernsey and Alderney in sheltered places
must have been about seven or eight inches and at Sark from
four to five. The drifts, however, ran into feet in all the
islands.
A week of absolutely dry weather everywhere (April
11th to 17th) followed the cold snap, after which unsettled
conditions developed and the month ended wet.
After rumbling in the distance for some time a violent
thunderstorm burst over Sark at mid-day on Wednesday, May
10th, and raged for close upon an hour accompanied by great
darkness and a downpour of rain and hail, the hail being of
abnormal size. Places were flooded by the rush of water and
at a farm at Le Port chickens were drowned. “ Strange to
say, but a small shower fell at Little Sark, nothing to hinder
> te
NOTES ON THE BAINFALL. 329
farming operations.” The storm deposited as much as
0:44 in. of water in Capt. Henry’s gauge at the Vallée du
Creux, but at Gruernsey, where thick fog prevailed and the
electrical disturbance was slight, only 0:05 in. of rain fell at
Les Blanches.
Alderney escaped the storm and shower altogether, but
not so on Thursday, the 18th, when thundery conditions
having again developed over the Bailiwick, that island lay in
the track of the electrical disturbance and 0°25 in. of rain fell
at 5 a.m. <A paltry 0°02in. of rain fell at Sark on this
occasion, but none at Guernsey, although distant thunder
was heard between 4 and 6 a.m.
The whole of the last half of May was very dry every-
where, and indeed the month as a whole was decidedly a
period of drought; it was also pleasantly warm and sunny.
These conditions spread into June. The first fortnight in fact
would have been almost rainless but for a terrific thunder-
storm which prevailed for five hours on the evening of
Thursday, the 8th. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) the down-
pour amounted to 1°35 in. and during the height of the storm,
“* Montville,” a large and at the moment untenanted house at
Les Vardes, was struck by the electric fluid and gutted. At
Sark the rainfall was much less heavy being only 0°76 in.
Alderney was not involved in the rain area at all for Mr.
Picot remarked under that day’s date: “tantalizing heavy
thunderstorm in S8.W.; no rain here.” As far as Guernsey
is concerned this was the worst summer thunderstorm
experienced for many years.
As a consequence of Alderney having escaped the rain of
this disastrous storm that island enjoyed four complete weeks
of absolutely dry weather, for the returns show that no rain at
all fell there during the twenty-eight days ended June 14th.
This was the longest “absolute” drought recorded in the
islands during the year.
Beginning on June 15th rain fell at all the stations, and
to the end of the month unsettled weather prevailed with
frequent copious showers. This period included the day of
the King’s Coronation celebrations, Thursday, the 22nd, the
festivities in connection with which were marred in the three
islands by much rain. At Guernsey, where the day was
sunless, O°4lin. of rain fell at Les Blanches; at Sark and
Alderney the amount was 0°26 in.
July was an ideal summer month—very warm as well as
very dry. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) and Sark no rain at
all fell until the 24th, but during the night from the 25th-
F
330 NOTES ON THE RAINFALL.
26th, a thunderstorm brought the drought to a temporary end
with a rainfall of over half-an-inch at all the stations. It
proved a very acceptable rainfall, coming as it did after more
than three weeks of hot, rainless weather. Writing about it
Mr. Picot said: ‘ Heavy thunderstorm at 2 a.m.; a boon to
everybody.” Another electrical disturbance, but with much
smaller rainfall, passed across the islands on Saturday after-
noon, the 29th, the peculiarity in connection with which was
the occurrence of a violent whirlwind and dust-storm which
immediately preceded the dash of rain. The enormous quan-
tity of dust whirled up by the wind was a striking feature of
the phenomenon, and to those exposed to the brunt of the
squall the dust was suffocating in its violence. The storm,
which was of the line-squall type, was afterwards traced right
across the British Isles. Krom the recorded observations it is
shown to have “first struck the extreme end of Cornwall
about 2 p.m. on July 29th, and passed across Shetland at
3 p.m. the next day.” At Guernsey the whirlwind and dust-
storm occurred at 3 p.m.
“ Absolute” droughts followed each other in quick
succession during the summer months, especially by the way
at Sark where a total for the year of five occurred, against
four at Alderney and two at Guernsey. In the tabulation of
droughts at the end of this paper it will be seen that Guernsey
(Les Blanches) and Sark recorded one each in August.
Alderney escaped the distinction (!) because of a fall of
0°04 in. of rain on the 12th. On the other hand both Sark
and Alderney ended a three weeks’ drought on September
18th in which Guernsey was barred from participating just
because a shower, again giving a paltry 0°04 in. of water, fell
on the 4th. :
However all droughts, and at the same time the won-
derful summer of 1911, with its ideal hot and sunny days,
came to an abrupt and permanent end on September 18th, for
rain set in everywhere the next day and a spell of unsettled
cyclonic weather began, destined to last with but little break
to the end of the year, and beyond it.
October proved an interesting period because of several
peculiarities in the distribution of the rainfall. To begin with,
while 0°72 in. was recorded by Capt. Henry, at Sark, on the
5th, only 0°49in. fell at Guernsey (Les Blanches), while
Alderney had nothing more than 0°17in. This occurred with
a strong EK. wind and a thundery type of weather, for thunder
rolled at Guernsey for some time during the early afternoon.
Two days later, on Saturday morning, the 7th, when two
NOTES ON THE RAINFALL. sol
thunderstorms of moderate intensity passed over Guernsey
and Sark, Alderney escaped the shower altogether. As a
consequence of these irregularities the totals of rainfall for the
three days, 5th-7th, were as follows :
Sark, 1:03 in. ; Alderney, 0:19in. ; Guernsey, 0°75 in.
Seldom, however, we should imagine, has a_ greater
contrast in the daily rainfall of the Channel Islands occurred
than that which was experienced on Friday, October 138th, for
while the day was absolutely dry at Guernsey, Sark and
Alderney, no less than 2°42ins. (very nearly 24 inches) of
rain fell at St. Aubin’s, Jersey! This extremely heavy
downpour was connected with a violent thunderstorm which
involved Jersey only, although at Guernsey distant thunder
was heard towards the 8.I. between 6 and 8 a.m. and the
whole day almost was foggy and sunless.
On the following day there was another peculiarity in the
rainfall, for while showers fell at Guernsey giving a total
of 0°16 in. of rain, both Sark and Alderney reported a dry day,
and well-marked differences were again noted on the 22nd,
23rd and 25th.
In its Alderney news the Evening Press of November 3rd
contained the following: “ On Tuesday night | October 31st]
promenaders saw a most perfect lunar rainbow overspanning
Fort Albert.” That same night at 10 o’clock a very fine and
perfect lunar rainbow was also seen here (Guernsey). Lunar
rainbows are of rare occurrence, all the conditions favourable
to their formation seeming difficult of accomplishment.
Both at Guernsey (Les Blanches) and Sark the year’s
heaviest rainfall occurred on October 27th, and by a curious
ee the amount was exactly the same at each station,
: 1:40in. At Alderney, November 11th, with 1:21 in. of
rain was the wettest day in that island. In the three islands
December proved the wettest month of the twelve. Rain fell
almost daily and the totals were excessively large even for a
winter month. The figures for Sark and Alderney are given
in the Table. At Guernsey (Les Blanches), where no less
than 8°07 in. was measured and 29 out of the 31 days had rain,
it was the second wettest month of the 18 years, 1894-1911.
In concluding these Notes I have again much pleasure in
acknowledging my indebtedness to Capt. Henry, of the Vallée
du Creux, Sark, and Mr. W.J. Picot, of Le Huret, Alderney,
who so very kindly continue to take charge of the rainfall
stations established in their islands at the beginning of 1906.
Rainfall observations are not difficult to take and they are
332 NOTES ON THE RAINFALL.
full of interest as well as of practical utility, but like all
meteorological observations they require constant attention
and to these two gentlemen our thanks are due for enabling us
to know something about the rainfall of two of the smaller
islands of the Bailiwick.
ABSOLUTE DROUGHTS IN 1911.
An Absolute Drought, as defined in British Rainfall, is
“a period of more than 14 consecutive days, no one of which
is a rain day.”
SARK.
January 26 to February 13 = 19 days.
May 18 to June 1 8 =) lone,
July 1 to 23 aoe.
August 2 to 19. a = ehehis.
August 29 to September 18 == a
ALDERNEY.
January 26 to February 13 = 19 days
May 18 to June 14... = 25
July lto 24... — eee
August 29 to September is. Sas =
GUERNSEY (Les BLANcuEs).
July 1 to 23 : = 23 days
August 6 to 23... ==) Sais
ParTIAL DrouGcutTs In 1911.
A Partial Drought, as defined in British Rainfall, is
“a period of more than 28 consecutive days, the mean rainfall
of which does not exceed ‘01 in. per day.”
SARK.
Jan. 12 to Feb. 17 = 37 days. Rainfall 0°24 in. on 8 days.
July 26 to Aug. 23 = 29 _,, a 0'145n. 7 ae
ALDERNEY.
Jan. 12 to Feb. 17 = 37 days. Rainfall 0.31 in. on 10 days.
May 4toJune 15 = 43 ,, - O°33 ita; 4, ant oes
July 26 to Aug. 23 = 29 _,, os 0°25 is hee
GUERNSEY (Lets Buancues).
Jan. 12 to Feb. 13 = 33 days. Rainfall 0°33in. on 8 days.
May4toJune7 =35 ,, be Ould ims ieee
Loncest Rain SPELL 1n 1911.
Inclusive dates giving the longest unbroken succession of
“rain days” for the year.
—_
December 8 to 28
December 8 to 28
Oct. 18 to N
December 2 to 28
NOTES
ON
SARK.
21 days.
ALDERNEY.
= 21 days.
GUERNSEY (Les BrancuHes).
—
—
ov. 13
27 days.
27
99
99
29
THE RAINFALL.
Total rainfall, 4°43 in.
Total rainfall, 5°98 in.
Total rainfall, 7°28 in.
7°99 in.
SARK AND ALDERNEY RAINFALL, 1911.
333
Monthly
Totals.
Months. =~
=
fe a
a A
M <q
in. in.
SANUATY ...0.... 1°46 | 1°60
Bebruary ...... 1:12 | 1:08
March ....... 1:97 | 2°10
PTL. a's 6 01 oe ee Doon 2c
REOMIN ssovote 6 6160. wines 0°89 | O77
PHEMIO®, a co-cavea ae BSR Ie) Esy!!
REMY. aisha iv e.y's, bie’ as 0°64 | 0°78
PEAUSUSL ...6.-..) 0°06 | 0°49
September...... 0°93 | 0°89
October ........ 5°06 | 4°39
November ...... 4°32 | 6:08
Wecember ,..... 5°64 | 7°33
The Year 126-71 (29°12
Rain
Days.
| Alderney.
(8
Falls
0°50 i
9
te)
2
above.
Jewel lawl ttle | Sark.
of
n.
ou ne fee} |e | Alderney.
Heaviest Daily Rainfall.
Sark Alderney.
in. | in,
0°62 11th 0°78 11th
0°30 24th 0°21 24th, 28th
0°41 17th 0°51 17th
0°31 26th |0°42 5th
0°44 10th | 0°27 2nd
0°76 8th 0°41 23rd
Oo272oth | 0°61 25th
0°27 24th | 0°20 24th
0°21 20th 0°27 20th
1°40 27th 1°04 27th
0°86 11th 12 th
0°55 22nd 0°73 8th
‘1:40 Oct. auth! 121 Nov. Lith! 10 | 14
Totals and Heaviest Rainfall for the Six Years, 1906-1911.
MSO cle oc nn ove ele a's | 26-07 28°63
LU | 26°15 | 28°84
BOS o. can cine ee a 18°51 | 24°02
1 ee ee 26°13 | 32°99
3110 ee 39°04] ?
Mee soisic. «oc ste ws + | 26°71 | 29°12
Averages ......| 27°10 | 28°72
161 168
178 188
155 150
146 (157
208 i
152 158
166
ek
1:11 Nov. 25th
0°62 Feb. 16th!
1°38 June 3rd
1°84 Oct. 13th!
1°40 Oct. 27th
"16 June 28th
164 [1°84 Oct. 13/10, 1:55 Nov. 15/09
0°85 Nov. 8th
1°15-Oct. Ist
1:04 Apl. 24th
1°55 Nov. L5th
?
1:21 Nov. 11th
14
11
Notr.—The Sark averages are based on six years’ observations, those for
Alderney on five years.
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PORT AND TRANSACTION
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SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCE
AND
LOCAL RESEARCH.
REPORT AND TRANSACTIONS.
1912.
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Guernsey s Y. of,
BICHARD'S PRINTING AND PUBLISHING COMBA YTD,
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1913.
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COUNCIb FOR THE YEAR 1918.
PRESIDENT:
Mr. F. L. TANNER, L.D.S., B.C.S.
VicE-PRESIDENTS:
DR. J. AIKMAN, M.D., C.M., L.R.C.S.
Mr. WM. CAREY, Bailiff.
Mr. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
LIEUT.-COLONEL T. W. M. DE GUERIN.
Mr. E. D. MARQUAND, A.L.S.
REV. W. CAMPBELL PENNEY, M.A.,, Principal of Elizabeth
College.
Mr. WM. SHARP.
HON. SECRETARY: HON. TREASURER:
Mr. 8S. C. CURTIS, A.R.I.B.A. Mr. C. G. DE LA MARE.
COUNCIL:
Mr. A. C. BESCOBY, B.Sc.
Miss M. BROWNEH, B.A.
REV F. eh. LOWE, M.A.
Miss A. L. MELLISH, M.A.
Mid. LINWOOD PITTS, M.J.1.,. F.S:A. (Normandy).
Mr. B. T. ROWSWELL.
LIST OF MEMBERS (1912).
1891—Aikman, Dr., M.D., C.M., L.R.C.S. Queen’s Road.
1903—Aikman, Mrs.
1903—Aikman, Miss
1904—Allés, Mr. G. F... -
1911—Banks, Mr. T. B. Cth tate
1912—Bescoby, Mr. A. C., B.Sc.
1882—Bichard, Mr. T. M.
1904—Bishop, Mr. Julius, Jurat of the
Royal Court .
1903—Bishop, Dr. Hee “ae M. Di,
MOR.C.S., Goh.C2r.
1907—Bisson, Mr. T. egaih. hate vtiont
1904—Blampied, Mr. C. ce a OS
1910—Blicaa Mas JiHevon eee
1912—Blocaille, Mr. EK... Re ae
1907—Bostock, Miss .. .« 2 «»
1912—Bourde de la Rogerie, Rev. A.
1909—Browne, Miss Mary, B.A...
1911—Brownsey, Mr. J.. 58
1889—Carey, Mr. F.
1890—Carey, Mr. J. J., late M.LC.E.,
PRG IS. thin. ee Fe
1897—Carey, Miss EB. 3. 1. 20 oe
1908—Carey, Mrod Woe.) Ge a
1891—Carey, Mr. William, Bailiff
Guernsey re Shy ea
1890—-Carré, Miss B. .. 1. oe
1911—Carruthers, Dr. J...
1907—Chalmers, Mr. A. L. ..
1911—Cheeswright, Miss E. S. :
1912—Clarke, Mrs. B:.J.° 15) 2h: \ 05
1882—Collenette, Mr. A., F.C.S. ia
1882—Collings, Colonel A. H.
1890—Collings, Miss M: B... .. ..
1912—Collings, Miss Amy .. .. «.
1882—Cole, Miss R. 56 00 56
1906—Corbin, Dr. E. K., M.R. c. S.
1908—-Corbin, Miss R. .. 2 «+ «s
1899—Cromartie, Mr. D. B... .. ..
- Queen’s Road.
-- Queen’s Road.
.. Gothic Cottage, St. Martin’s.
.. High Street.
. Care of Elizabeth College.
. Varendes, St. Andrew’s.
. Grange.
. Yandilla, Grange Road.
.. The Laurels, Vale.
.. La Fosse, St. Martin’s.
.. Melrose Villa, Brock Road.
. La Chaumette, Forest.
Smith Street.
. Burnt Lane.
. Ladies’ College.
. Pollet.
. Summerland, Mount Durand.
. Les Pins, Cobo.
.. The Elms, Cambridge Park.
.. Somerset Place, Queen’s Road.
of
. Queen’s Road.
. Elm Grove.
. College Terrace.
Corbiére, St. Pierre-du- Bois.
. The Studio, Sark.
Mount Durand.
. Brooklyn, Fort Road.
. Grange.
.. 24, Saumarez Street.
.. 24, Saumarez Street.
39, Canichers.
.» Saumarez Street.
.- Stanley Road.
.. Norfolk Lodge, Doyle Road.
1912. | LIST OF MEMBERS. 339
1912—Curtis, Mr. S. Carey, A.R.I.B.A. .. Mont Saint, St. Saviour’s.
1912—De Carteret, Miss .. .. .. .. Village de Putron, St. Marttn’s.
1893—De Guérin, Lieut.-Col. T. W. M.,
Jurat of the Royal Court ... .. Le Mont Durant, Mount Row.
1893—De Guérin, MissC.M. .. .. .. Le Mont Durant, Mount Row.
1906—De Jersey, Colonel Grant.. .. .. Pierre Percée.
1882—De La Mare, Mr.C.G. .. °.. .. Crottes.
1894—De Saumarez, Lord .. .. .. .. 43, Grosvenor Sq.. London, 8.W.
18938—Durand, Colonel C. J. lta ene, Grange Villa,
1906—Falla, Mr. A. ote . .. Les Hauteurs, Vale.
1904—Fleure, Dr. Herbert I Dy ce .. University College, eye
1908—Foote, Advocate W. HL. ~» «- ‘. 6, New Street.
1896—Foster, Miss F. A. .. .. . Granville House.
1905—Guilbert, Mr. T. J., States Airecto: Rohais.
18382—Guille, MissS. ..° .. .. .. .. Cressington, Gravées.
1893—Harvey, General J. R. .. .. .. Oakleigh, Mount Durand.
1906—Henry, Mr. 8S. M. Mews) oe COMMELCIALbanic,
1893—Hocart, Mr. J. S. er . Les Mielles, Vale.
1911—Hocart, Mr. A. J., Jurat of me oval
Couric 25. . as ee Ls blanc Bois, Castel,
1906—Irish, Mr. John W.B. .. .. ... Evening Press Office, Smith Street.
1903—Kelson, Mrs. a fea ean eee DOVE oad:
1882—Le Cocq, Mr. San ater a AOR uO lbh acayal. J bree kexer
1893—Le Cocq, Captain «2» ee ee «. Beau Séjour, Cambridge Park-rd.
1ot2—e Weuvre, Miss C. .. ~. .. .., Brock Terrace.
1912—Le Messurier, Mr. H.C... .. .. Beauséant, St. Martin’s Road,
1903-—Le Mottée, Colonel G. H., Jurat of
tie Royal Court ).. .. .. .. Hauteville.
ie Eelley, Me J. QQ... .. «. <<. Vauvert.
1912—Le Pelley, Mr. H. .. . City & Midland Bank, HighStreet.
1884—Lee, the late Rev. G.E., M. ie F. 8. rv George Place.
1882—Lowe, Rev. F. E., M.A., BES. ;
Membre de la Société Lepidop- |
terede Genéve .. .. .. .. St. Stephen’s Vicarage.
1911—Luff, Mr. E. A... .. .. «- «+ La Chaumiére, Brock Road.
1903—Macleane, Mr. KE. F.H. .. .. .. La Bigoterie.
1894—Mainguy, General F. B., Jurat of
the Royal Court .. .. .. .. Les Rocquettes.
1888—Marquand, Mr. E. D. a L.S... .. 46, Kimbolton Road, Bedford.
1896—Marquand, Mr. H.E.. .. . . Star Office.
1907—Mauger, Mr. H. E., H.M.’s Sheriff, . King’s Road.
1900—Mellish, Miss A. ie MOA. sr ss «. Ladies’ College.
1911—Metman, Mr. R... ; Les Vaurioufs, St. Martin’s.
1908—Moon, Miss A. .. ... .. King’s Road.
1905—Naftel, Mr. A.M. .. .. .. .. 13, George Road.
1907—Nicolle, Mr. E.T. .. .. .. .. 8, Norfolk Terrace, Jersey.
1899—Penfold, Rev. J.B. V. .. .. .«. Albecq, Cobo.
1889—Penney, Rev. W.C., M.A. .. .. Elizabeth College.
A
340 LIST OF MEMBERS.
1882—Pitts, Mr. J. L., F.S.A. Cate Guille-Allés Library. —
1906—Randell, Miss Clara .. .. .. Grove End, Doyle Road
1912—Ridge, Mr. P. H. «. (os oe «sn MavOnia, Hones:
1896—Robilliard, Mr. P. KE... .. .. .. la Piette.
1903—Robinson, Dr. KE. L., M.R.C.S., |
ERE CAR ae tes). at . Melrose, Gravées.
1911—Ross-Taylor, Dr., M.D. Ch: B. (Glas
gow) .. oe oe os 9s 2, Queen sean
1904—Rowswell, Mr. B. T. .. .. ..» Les Blanches, St. Martin’s.
1911—Ryder, Colonel F. J. oof oe las OG pElonele
1883—Sharp, Mr. W. .. .. .. .«. .. ‘*Sherborne,’’ Rocquettes.
1907—Sinel, Mr. Joseph... .. ~.. +~«.. 12, Royal Crescent, Jersey.
1912—Smith, Miss W., B.Sc. .. .. «.. Ladies’ College.
1911—Smith, Mr. W.H. .. «= .: .. North Msplanade:
1909——Spencer, Mr. Ri Ps 3.0 a. .. Brock Road.
1912—Stevens-Guille, Rev. H. G. ae C. .. St. George Castel.
1903—Tanner, Mr. F. L., L.D.S., R.C.S... Vauvert House.
1905—Tanner, Mrs. .. .. «. «. .. Vauvert House,
1893—Tourtel, Rev. R. H., M.A., B.D.,
F.S.A. (Normandy) .. .. .. Torteval Rectory:
1906—Végeais, Miss -. .. -. +. .. Brock Read:
1912 —Warren, Mr. J. P., B. Soe. <4 . 10, Mount Row.
1903— Wild, Dr. H. 8. ML. R.CS., an RIC: P. Gravées.
logs ayeolcemme! De Robert eed MAW 2
LL.D., F.R.G.S., M.R.I.A. .. 14, Waterloo Road, Dublin.
NEw MEMBERS (19195).
1913—Butler, Mr. Edmund.. .. .. .. Delancey.
1913—Clarke, Mr. F. J. os Jee’ ae 4% States Arcade,
1913—-Cohu, Rev. J. R... .. .. «. .. Aston Clinton Rectory, Tring.
1913—Creswell, Dr. W.G. .. .. .. .. La Banquette, Cobo.
1913—O’Reilly, Dr. B.C. N. .. .. .. La Plaiderie.
1913—Tourtel, Miss M... .. .. .. .. Havilland Vale, St. Martin’s.
JUNIOR MEMBERS (1913).
1913—Carré, Miss Marjorie.. .. .. .. Care of Ladies’ College.
1913—Dorey, Miss Claire .. .. .. .. Care of Ladies’ College.
In Memoriam.
GHRORGE THOMAS DERRICK.
eee
BETWEEN two and three years ago this Society sustained a
severe loss when, as the result of sudden illness, Mr.
GEoRGE Tuomas DERRICK was compelled to relinquish
all active co-operation in the Society’s work, to which he had
previously contributed much valuable service. And early this
year, in spite of many hopes to the contrary, that loss became
permanent by the regretted death of Mr. DeErrick. on
April 10th [1912] in the 73rd year of his age.
Mr. DERRICK was one of the original members of the
Society, joining it at the time of its inception [ Oct. 10th,
1882], and thence forward for about eight and twenty years,
until incapacitated by illness, he was a regular attendant at
its meetings, and was most energetic in promoting its success,
He was its first Vice-President, the late Sir Edgar MacCul-
loch (then Mr. MacCulloch) being elected the first President.
Mr. DERRICK also ably filled other positions in connec-
tion with the Society as time went on. He was President in
1897-1898, and for about ten years (from 1901 to the Spring
of 1910, when failing health compelled his retirement) he was
Hon. Sec. Although his speciality was Botany, yet he always
took a general all-round interest in every branch of the Society’s
work; and the Guille-Allés Museum contains several inte-
resting flnds of his in Natural History and Archeology, which
were presented by him to the Collection. He also contributed
many valuable papers to the Society’s Transactions.
Mr. DERRICK was a native of Bristol, his connection
with Guernsey dating from 1860, when he first came to reside
in the Island and took up the head-mastership of the “ British”
Boys’ School, a position which he held for more than forty
Dae IN MEMORIAM.
years, when he retired. Among other social activities to
which Mr. DERRICK applied himself, was the work of the
St. John’s Ambulance Association-- and in this latter he was
enthusiastically aided by Mis. Derrick, who for many years
was a most valuable helper in the practical part of the work.
Mr. Derricx also filled the offices of a People’s Deputy; a
Member of the States Education Committee; a Director of
the Guernsey Gas-Light Company; a Member of the
Guille-Allés Library Council, &c., &c.
Mr. Derrick’s funeral roe place on Wednesday,
April 12th [1912], the friends meeting at St. James’ Church,
and the interment being at the Foulon Cemetery. Mrs.
Derrick who, at the time of her husband’s death, was lying
seriously ill at the Victoria Cottage Hospital, passed away at
that Institution on Monday, April 22nd [1912], just twelve
days after the death of her husband. She was 75 years of age.
PAPERS BY MR. DERRICK PRINTED IN THE
“TRANSACTIONS.”
The Ferns of Guernsey (1882).
An Excursion to Icart Point (1883).
Changes in the Relative Level of Sea and Land round Guernsey
(1883).
Excursion to Herm (1889).
A Visit to Jethou (1890).
Guernsey Clays (1892).
A Visit to Lihou (1895).
Cup Markings (1896).
The Flora of Sark (1896).
Additions to the Sark Flora, since the publication of the
proceedings of 1896; further remarks on the Flora and
Notes on the List of 1896 (1897).
Additions to the Sark Flora (1889).
An Excursion to St. Pierre-du-Bois (1902).
Jerbourg and its Fortifications—a Contribution to Guernsey
History (1903).
The Antiquities of Alderney (1906).
Archeological Remains in Guernsey (1906).
St. Peter- Port i in Bygone Times, by Mr. C. J. Cox; revised and
edited by Mr. G. T. Derrick (1907).
With reference to Mr. DreRRICK’s work as a botanist,
Mr. E. D. Marquand, A.L.S., the author of the Flora of.
Guernsey and the Lesser Channel Islands, writes as follows :
1912.] IN MEMORIAM. 343
Perhaps the most memorable stroke of work in Mr.
DERRICK’s botanical career was the discovery in Guernsey as
far back as the year 1877 of Gymnogramma leptophylla, a fern
which up to that time was supposed to grow only in Jersey.
Mr. DrrRRiIcK was a great lover of ferns, and knew them
well. One day in the course of a walk in the country his
sharp eyes detected this delicate and graceful little fern
growing in considerable abundance in a hedgebank at St.
Baviter’ s. hat was thirty-five years ago, and although the
plant still flourishes in its old habitat, it has never been
discovered anywhere else in these islands, in spite of deter-
mined and persistent searching as well by Mr. Derrick
himself as by many other botanists. It was a famous find,
quite on a par with Wolsey’s discovery in 1854 of another
non-British fern, Ophioglossum lusitanicum, on the cliffs above
Petit Bot Bay.
Mr. Derrick had quite a fair knowledge of the flowering
plants of these islands, though he was not by any means what
-is called a critical botanist, in fact his acquaintance with
the indigenous flora was general rather than special. He
never troubled much about hair-splitting differences and
microscopical details: he was emphatically a field botanist,
and not a herbarian student, and it is probable that he would
not willingly have undertaken to name off-hand a miscellaneous
collection of dried plants. But once in the open country, on
the rugged cliff-sides, or in the shady water lanes he loved so
well, he was ever on the alert, watchful for something new:
his eyes were always wide open, and any unfamiliar flower
was carefully gathered and brought home for determination.
The publication of a list of the Flowering Plants and
Ferns of Sark may be placed among the most important
of Mr. DERRICK’s achievements as a botanist. During a
series of visits extending over three years—1896 to 1898—he
collected notes and materials which enabled him from personal
observation to draw up an excellent and reliable localised list
of nearly 350 species of wild flowers growing in the small
island of Sark. This was a fine piece of work, and the
thoroughness of his search is proved by the fact that more
344 IN MEMORIAM.
than fifty plants noted by him had never been previously
detected, although several well-known botanists had from time
to time published notes and lists of the Sark Flora.
During his residence of half-a-century in Guernsey Mr.
DERRICK seems never to have got tired of visiting Sark,
and few people knew the island as thoroughly as he did.
Seeing what valuable work he had done among the flowering
plants, I persuaded him to direct his attention to the Mosses
and Hepatice of Sark about which very little indeed was
known, though the island seemed to offer a promising field for
investigation. Always enthusiastic about anything that
concerned his favourite island—for he considered Sark as
peculiarly his own—he agreed to hunt for and collect
specimens and hand them over to me if I would undertake to
identify them and publish a list. Several visits of a week or
two at a time he made specially for this purpose, and the final
result of an omnium gatherum made in every part of the island,
and in all kinds of localities where mosses are to be found,
was the compilation of a most valuable list of some 80 species
with their local distribution. This list was printed in the
Transactions of this Society for the year 1903.
Some years earlier than this Mr. Derrick had assisted
with great zeal and activity in collecting the fungi of
Guernsey for the preparation of a systematic list. <A
reference to the pages of the Flora of Guernsey will show how
extensive his work was. More than 120 species of fungi are
there recorded under his name, and several of these have not
since been found by any other collector.
The few points that I have just briefly touched upon
will suffice to show how keen and energetic Mr. DERRICK
was in everything that he undertook. His death causes
a lamentable gap in the front rank of the members of this
Society, and the wide interest he took in all matters and
subjects embraced by the Society will make his loss the more
severely felt. Personally I have lost in him an old and
valued friend of twenty years’ standing, a friend whose
memory wili always be endeared to me by his sterling honesty
of purpose, and his wholesome hatred of everything that
savoured of make-believe and pretence.
TRANSACTIONS OF THE SOGIETY.
S10 =
The Ninth Annual Soirée of the Society was held in the
Lecture Hall of the Guille-Allés Library on February 13,
1912. The Hall was well filled, and the audience testified
its gratification at the entertainment provided, which, follow-
ing the custom of previous years, consisted of Short Lectures,
interspersed with items of Vocal and Instrumental Music. _.
The President, Col. T. W. M. de Guérin, said he
regretted the unavoidable absence of His Excellency the
Lieutenant-Governor, and then said the Society was to be
congratulated on its increased membership, and its satisfactory
balance at the bank. The Summer’s Excursions had revived
interest in the Society and its work. There was still much
to be learnt of the Geology of the Southern Cliffs, and other
branches, especially Marine Zoology, were calling out for
workers. He hoped that the search for evidences of Pre-
historic Man in the Island would be continued, and that we
might be as successful in this respect as our Jersey friends.
The President then thanked those ladies and gentlemen who
had given their services that evening, especially the Staff of
the Ladies’ College, and Mr. F. Tanner, who had again so
successfully organised the Meeting.
The first short lecture, by Dr. Aikman, was entitled
“The Wist of the Weird,” and proved very interesting.
The second lecture was given by Mr. J. P. Warren,
B.Sc., the subject being ‘The ice-mother of the Great
Lakes.” In this Mr. Warren principally devoted his remarks
to the theory of the formation of the great North American
lakes, which were all due to former glacial action. But as
nature was responsible for the formation of these lakes, so
also to it were due capes, rivers, volcanoes, earthquakes,
deserts, &c. With regard to water, it was to be found
everywhere, its utility to man being apparent to all. During
his lecture pictures of glaciers, the Alps, rock floors polished
by glacial action were shown. Changes in the aspect of
countries were continually going on, and were we able to look
upon the world as it was a million years ago, what a different
aspect it would reveal from what we are accustomed to to-day.
With regard to the great lakes in North America, they were
346 MEETINGS.
gradually being tilted towards the South. The process was
certainly slow, as the change was taking place at the rate of
one-third of a foot only in 1,000 years. Measurements had
proved.this. With regard to Niagara, as the water would no
longer be poured towards it from Lakes Ontario, Michigan
and Huron, probably in 3,000 years it. would be dried up.
Mr. A. C. Bescoby, B.A., took for the title of his
lecturette “ Plant Associations.” In this he remarked that
every part of the world had its own class of vegetation, every
portion of it had its own flora, at home as well as abroad.
Moreover, every class of vegetation was adapted to its situa-
tion. As arule plants removed from one situation to another
did not thrive there as well as in their own habitat.
iverything that grew had its own relation between the
climate and the soil. Botany was of absorbing interest,
although possibly its knowledge was more interesting than
important. But the lecturer could assure his readers that
most wonderful things could be discovered in the anatomy
of plants. Those he referred to were water, marsh, bog and
sea plants. Mr. Bescoby showed some pictures (on the
screen) of a pine forest, where vegetation did not flourish
owing to the shade of the trees, marshy and pasture land, and
some of the great tracks of chalky land in the South of
Kngland where only stunted grass grew. This, however, was
excellent for sheep pasture. After a few more remarks, in
which he said that everything that was created showed the
hand of God, he commended the study of botany to his
hearers. |
The musical portion of the programme was provided by
Miss A. Philipp, who contribnted two pianoforte solos, played
in her usual brilliant style, and Mrs. Mesny and Mr. Tudor
Williams, both of whom sang twice. All these items were
heartily applauded. A most enjoyable evening closed with
the National Anthem.
Monthly Meeting held March 20th, 1912, the Presidenl,
Col. de Guérin, in the Chair.
Mr. J. P. Warren, B.Sc., Mr. J. S. Carey Curtis, A.Bi,
I.B.A., Miss W. Smith, B.Sc., were unanimously elected
Members of the Society.
Miss Edith Carey read a paper entitled “ Amias Andros
and Edward his son.” The paper was illustrated by lantern
views, which included portraits of various members of the
1912.] MEETINGS. 347
Andros family. These were taken from paintings in the
possession of Rev. Stevens Guille, of St. George, Catel.
Miss Carey’s paper will be found elsewhere in this volume.
Mr. A.’ Collenette read “‘ Notes on a deposit of Glacial
Clay and its contents at an elevation of 3800 feet O.D.”
The contents or finds were recently discovered in Mr.
Collenette’s garden, at Brooklyn, Fort Road. They were
exhibited at the meeting and included half-a-dozen flint
scrapers, shapings from cores, and a core from which a flint
hand been knocked off, a quantity of sea-worn pebbles, several
small boulders, a sub-angular stone with striations and parts of
two bones. One of the latter was only a fragment; the other
was about three inches in length and was merely a shell.
It had been examined by Dr. A. 8S. Woodward, of the
British Museum, who had determined it to be part of the
humerus of a pig, but the species was undeterminable. Mr.
Collenette considered the things mentioned above had been
deposited where they were found by floating or melting ice.
The clay and its contents were deposited continuously and
from above. There was a complete absence of stratification,
hence the clay could not have been water deposited from
streams. Mr. Collenette therefore associated the deposit
with ice movement which could easily have collected and
deposited the clay and its contents. ‘The flints are indefinite
asto age, and might be referred, by different persons, to late
Paleolithic or early Neolithic ages. The deposit, being
glacial, favoured the opinion of the flints being Paleolithic,
and if this is confirmed, it is practically the first indication of
Paleolithic man in Guernsey. The flints were examined by
Mr. R. M. Marett and Dr. Arthur Evans, at Oxford.
An animated discussion, in which several members took
part, followed.
Monthly Meeting, 16th October, 1912, Col. de Guérin,
President, in the Chair.
Rev. H. de C. Stevens Guille, Mrs. F. Clarke, Mr.
H. C. Le Messurier, Rev. A. Bourde de la Rogerie, Mr.
J. H. P. Ridge, Mr. Blocaille, were unanimousiy elected
Members of the Society.
Mr. A. Collenette, F.C.S., read an interesting and
exhaustive paper on the Geological and other results of the
recent Summer J[ixcursions. The paper will be found in this
volume (p. 273).
348 MEETINGS.
Mr. 8S. Carey Curtis and Mr. Collenette gave details,
and shewed illustrations on the screen by means of the electric
lantern, of the pre-historic potter’s kiln found at Hougue
Noirmont, Vale.
Monthly Meeting held on November 20th, 1912, the President,
Col. de Guérin, in the Chair.
Miss Amy Collings was unanimously elected Member of
the Society.
The President referred in feeling terms to the great loss
the Society had suffered through the death of the Rev. G. E.
Lee, M.A., at one time President. He spoke of the valuable
papers he had contributed to the Society, and of his great
knowledge and interest in all matters Archeological, and con-
cluded by expressing the deep sympathy of the Society with
the family in their bereavement.
Rev. Bourde de la Rogerie read a letter which he had
received from Comte de Chavannes, in which the latter stated
that roughly cylindrical masses of baked clay similar to those
found near Fort Grey, Rocquaine, had been discovered at
Metz.
The principal business of the evening was to hear reports
on the megalithic structure and enclosure recently discovered
at L’Islet. These reports, which were read by Mr. Carey
Curtis, Mr. A. Collenette and Col. de Guérin, will be found
reproduced in this volume.
The meeting concluded with the President’s expression
of thanks to Messrs. Curtis and Collenette for the able man-
ner in which they had superintended the excavations, and for
their valuable report; Mr. N. Le Tissier, of St. Magliore,
who had undertaken the excavation, and to those ladies and
gentlemen who had so liberally subscribed to the Exploration
sund.
The Thirteenth Annual Meeting held December 11th, 1912,
the President, Col. de Guérin, in the Chair.
The annual Sectional reports, giving in detail the work
of the year in various branches, were read as follows :—
Botany—-Mr. R. Metman.
Hntomologv—Rev. F. E. Lowe.
Geology—Mr. C. G. De La Mare.
Marine Zoology—Mr. F. L. Tanner.
Ornithology—Mr. B. Rowswell.
1942..| MEETINGS. 349
The Hon. Secretary followed with the Annual Report of
the Council, and the Hon. Treasurer presented his Financial
Statement for the year, which shows a balance in hand of
£26 5s. 4d.
The election of Officers was next proceeded with. Mr.
F. L. Tanner, F.Z.8., was elected President, and Mr. Carey
Curtis Hon. Secretary ; Mr. C. G. De La Mare was re-
elected Hon. Treasurer; and the Council was re-elected en
bloc, Mr. A. C. Bescoby replacing Mr. Tanner.
Owing to the lateness of the hour, the retiring President’s
address was postponed to the next meeting.
Monthly Meeting, held January 25rd, 1913, the President, Mr.
FY LL. Tanner, in the Chair.
Dr. Cresswell, of La Banquette, Cobo, was proposed by
Mr. J. J. Carey, for membership and seconded by Mr. B.
Rowswell.
Mr. Collenette exhibited a fine and very perfect hazel
nut found in the peat, at Cobo, on January 20th.
Colonel de Guérin read his postponed Presidential Address.
The Colonel’s paper, “ A Contribution towards the recon-
struction of the History of Guernsey during the latter half of
the XIVth Century,” will be published in the 1912 Zran-
sactions.
Mr. Collenette read his usual annual report on the Rainfall
and Sunshine of Guernsey. The year 1912, as Mr. Collenette
clearly showed, by means of lantern slides, proved an unusually
wet and remarkably gloomy one. In rainfall the last 70
years could produce only four with a bigger total, while
as regards sunshine the year was the gloomiest of the
last nineteen. Mr. Collenette discussed the rainfall as measured
at nine different stations scattered over the island and briefly
referred to the amount measured at Sark and Alderney,
where observations have been taken since January, 1906.
The sunshine figures were those for Mr. Collenette’s own
station at “ Brooklyn,” Fort Road.
Hearty votes of thanks were given to Colonel de Guérin
and Mr. Collenette for their interesting papers.
The President announced the date of the Soirée, viz.,
Wednesday, February 12th.
350 REPORTS.
Report of the Council, 1912.
The year just completed has been an interesting one,
and much valuable work has been accomplished. Both the
Indoor Meetings and the Excursions have been well attended.
The Annual Soirée was a great success. Papers have been
read on *“ Amias Andros and Edward, his son’; * Notes on a
deposit of Glacial Clay, and its contents at an elevation of
500 teet) O.Di7; Geological and other results of the recent
Summer Excursions”; “ The newly-discovered Dolmen, &c.,
at L’Islet”-; “The Sunshine and Raimtally tor 19l
“Guernsey in the latter half of the Fourteenth Century ” ;
“ Lihou and its Priory.”
At this meeting subscriptions were solicited and received
towards defraying ike cost of restoration (£2) of the old
Watch Tower at La Hougue du Pommier, Castel.
EXCURSIONS.
The first excursion this year was on April 20th, those
who took part being a small working party who located a cave
at Les Tielles, in the side of fie cliff, but as the cave
was extremely difficult to reach the exploration was post-
poned until the services of an expert cliffclimber had been
secured.
The postponed exploration took place on June 8th, when
Mr. Harold Le Messurier and Mr. F. Tanner descended to
the cave and afterwards reported that it had a rocky bottom
covered to a depth of three or four inches with loose ground,
and that there were no traces of its having been occupied
as a shelter by prehistoric man. The cave is about 70 feet
from the top of the cliff and faces south-west.
On June 21st an excursion was made to the Creux du
Chien, near Icart Point. [Examination revealed that the front
of the cave is piled up to a height of 12 feet with ancient beach,
forming an almost solid conglomerate. The cave itself is about
30 feet high at the entrance and gradually slopes to nothing
at the back. Although the floor was trenched it yielded
nothing of value. The work on this occasion was extremely
laborious owing to the heavy coils of rope and a ladder which
had to be used to accomplish the last part of the descent at
the foot of the slope which is about 200 feet long.
A driving excursion to Ste. Appoline Chapel took place
on July 28th and was well attended. The chapel was
thoroughly inspected, and the frescoes on the ceilings were
most distinctly seen by a strong light reflected upon them by
12) | REPORTS. 351
means of a white sheet which had been provided by Mr. S. Carey
Curtis. Col. de Guérin gave a most interesting account
of the history of the chapel from the time of its building to
the Reformation, after which it is believed Divine Service
was no longer celebrated there. The party then proceeded
to a field near l’[rée and inspected two stones which bear the
impression of the right foot of one man and the left foot
of another. Tradition has it that one of these impressions
was that of the foot of St. Brioc and the other of the Abbott | |
of Lihou, each of whom stood with one foot on each stone
while discussing ecclesiastical matters. A halt was made at
Fort Grey, where a geological examination was made in the
neighbourhood. Here a midden containing fragments of
pottery and trivets was found. The journey was continued to
Pezerie Point and another geological examination was made.
The result of this Mr. Collenette reported in the paper which
he read at the October meeting.
On August 16th, the last excursion for the year took
place. The objective was Lihou Island. The outing was
very largely attended. Arrived at the Island Mr. Carey
Curtis read a most interesting history of the ancient Priory,
now in ruins, besides giving a description of the Priory. To
illustrate his subject Mr. Curtis had prepared a small model of
the Priory as it appeared when complete. The paper read by
Mr. Curtis will also be found in the Transactions for 1912.
After leaving Lihou Island a visit was paid to Mr. H.
de Garis’ house, Bon Air, near Les Adams. Here Mr.
de Garis showed the party the famous Lihou stone which was
discovered about 100 years ago. The stone is now imbedded
in the wall of a side room. On the stone is sculptured a
representation of the Priory as it appeared when intact. The
stone is very ancient and is probably contemporaneous with
the Priory as it stood, 300 or 400 years ago. It bears
the date MCXIV., but the lettering is rather modern.
MEMBERSHIP.
We opened the year with 92 members, we close it with
96. 13 new members have been elected during the year.
OBITUARIES.
We have to regretfully chronicle the loss of two valued
members, whose deaths leave a gap which cannot be easily
filled. The first is that of Mr. George T. Derrick, who had
been a member of the Society since its inception on October
10, 1882. He was its first Vice-President, the President
352 REPORTS.
being Sir Edgar MacCulloch, and was President for 1896-
1897.
Mr. Derrick was also Hon. Secretary of the Society from
December 19,:1900, to September, 1910, when failing health
caused him to resign.
The second whom the Society has to deplore is the Rev.
G. E. Lee, whose sudden and unexpected death on the 5th of
last November caused such a profound sensation throughout
the island. Mr. Lee joined the Society in 1884, and fre-
quently contributed papers on archeology (on which he was
an authority) which were always of the greatest interest and
value. He was President of the Society for 1907-1908.
He was a keen antiquary, a Fellow of the Society of Anti-
quaries, a member of the Société des Antiquaires de Nor-
mandie, honorary member of the Société Polymathique du
Morbihan, and for many years Vice-President of the Guernsey
Historical and Antiquarian Society, now unhappily extinct.
He had taken intense interest in the excavations in the dolmen
at Islet which was discovered last September, and in connec-
tion with it had promised to read at our last meeting a paper
entitled “ Archelogical Considerations and Associations.”
The donations and exchanges have resulted in the
following additions to the Society’s Library :—
From the Rev. FE. Hill, M.A., of Cockfield, Bury St. Hdmunds :—
Petrological Notes on Guernsey, Herm, Sark and Alderney,
by Professor T. G. Bonney and the Rev. Edwin Hill.
[ Reprinted from the Quarterly Journal of the Geological
Society for February, 1912, Vol. LX VIII.
From Mr. E. D. Marquand, A.L.S.:—
Journal of the Linnean Society. Nos. 272 to 277, and 279.
Seven unbound numbers forming part of Vols. XXXIX.,
XL. and XLI, 1910-1912.
Proceedings of the Linnean Society. 122nd and 1238rd
Session, 1910-1911. Two Vols.
From Mr. Joseph Sinel, of St. Helier, Jersey :—
“Man,” for October, 1912, containing paper: “ Report on
the resumed Exploration of ‘La Cotte, St. Brelade,
by the Société Jersiaise,’ by E. Toulmin Nicolle and
J. Sinel.
From the Author :—
Frequency in Floral Analysis (Rural Studies Series, No. 15),
by the Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, L.Th., F.L.S.,
Vicar of Cadney, Brigg.
1912. | REPORTS. 353
From La Société Jersiaise, Jersey :—
Actes des Etats de l’Ile de Jersey, 1780-1785 and 1875-1788.
Journal de Jean Chevalier. me. Fascicule.
Trente-septieme Bulletin Annuel, 1912.
From the Trustees of the British Museum :—
General Index to a Hand-list of the Genera and Species of
Birds. Volumes I—V. Edited by W. R. Ogilvie-Grant.
From the Horniman Museum and Library, Forest Hill,
London, S.E. :—
Handbooks to the Stages in the Evolution of the Domestic
Arts. Part I: Agriculture, the Preparation of Food and
Fire-making ; Part H.: Basketry, Pottery, Spinning and
Weaving, &c.
Handbook to the Marine Aquaria. Second Edition, 1912.
Report for the year 1911.
From the Marine Biological Association, Plymouth :—
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United
Kingdom. Vol. VII., N.S. (1904-06); Vol. VIII., N.S.
(1907-10), and Vol. IX., N.S., No. 1. Unbound.
From the Torquay Natural History Society, founded 1844 ;—
Journal of the Torquay Natural History Society. Vol. L,
No. 4, 1912.
From the Société d’ Archeologie d Avranche et de Mortain :—
Revue de l’Avranchin. Bulletin Semestriel. Année 1912,
Nos. 1 and 2.
From the Société Nationale des Sciences de Cherbourg, founded
December, 1851 :—
Mémoirs de la Societé Nationale des Sciences Naturelles et
Mathematiques de Cherbourg. Publiés sous la direction
de M. L. Corbiere, Secrétaire Perpétuel de la Société.
Vols. XXXVI. to XXXVIII., 1906-07 to 1911-12. Three
Volumes.
From the Laboratoire Maritime de Concarneau :—
Travaux Scientifiques du Laboratoire de Zoologie et
de Physiologie Maritimes de Concarneau. Tome III.
(6 Fasc.), 1911, and Tome IV. (Fasc. 1 and 2), 1912.
From Portici, Italy :—
Bollettino de Laboratorio di Zoologia Generale 6 Agraria
della R. Scuola Superiore d’Agricultura in Portici.
Wolk Vie, L912:
354 REPORTS.
From the United States of America :—
Boston.—Proceedings of the Boston Society of Natural
History: Vol. XXXIV., Nos. 9 to 12) 190= i:
Boston.—Phylogeny of the EKchini, with a revision of
Paleozoic Species, by Robert Tracy Jackson. With 76
Plates, 1912. Vol. VII. of the Society’s Memoirs.
Cincinnatti, Ohio.—Bulletin of the Lloyd Library of
Botany, Pharmacy and Materia Medica. Pharmacy Series,
No. 5, 1912, and Mycological Series, No. 6, 1912 (Synopsis
of the Stipitate Polyporoids). | ) |
Philadelphia.—Proceedings of the Academy of Natural
Sciences of Philadelphia. Vol. EXIT. Paeip ay toil:
and Vol: EXEV., Parts land 27 19k:
Washington.—Library of Congress. Report for the years
Odd ancl E91:
Washington.—Smithsonian Institution. Annual Report for
year ending June 30, 1910.
Washington.—Smithsonian Institution. Report of the
U.S. National Museum for the year ending June 30,
1911-1912.
In conclusion the Council desires to thank the Board of
Management of the Guille-Allés Library for the use of this
room for the monthly and Council meetings, for the loan of the
hall for the Soirée, as also for the continued and greatly
appreciated interest they show in the Society’s work.
REPORTS.
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356ua REPORTS.
Report of the Botanical Section, 1912.
The most important fact to be noted is the discovery
of a plant new to the island: Amaryllis lutea, L. (syn.
Sternbergia lutea, Gavol). I have known the plant growing
for at least seven years near Hougue du Pommier on the
Grandes Rocques road, and it seems now quite established’
and spreading. Although it has certainly escaped from a
garden, we must give it a place in our flora. Amaryllis lutea
is a kind of yellow crocus blooming in September; the long
leaves come out after the bloom, and in summer the whole
of the plant disappears.
As far as I know the plant has not been found in
England ; in France it grows in Provence, in the neighbour-
hood of Agen and Noirmentiers, also around Lyon, which
is its extreme north station.
I have also to record a new station in Guernsey for
Fragaria vesca, li., in a lane behind St. Saviour’s Church,
but only a few plants—Setaria glauca, P.B., at Les Vaurioufs,
St. Martin’s—Digitaria sanguinalis, Scop, as a weed in a
private property at Les Becquets, St. Martin’s.
Five plants of Datura stramonium, L., sprang up on
a big rubbish heap along the tramway line at Belgréve Bay.
Both at the Ladies’ College and St. Andrew’s Cottage
Garden Society there was a competition for wild plants dried
and mounted. Several exhibits numbered as many as three
hundred species. Perhaps our Society could do something to
show our interest in these competitions.
I wish to mention also one or two points about the plants
noticed this year. During August Cicendia pusilla, Gris.,
was very plentiful near Fort Doyle, as also Arthrolobium
ebracteatum, D.C., and Ophioglossum lusitanicum, L. These
plants do not appear every year. Sueda maritima, Dum.,
occurs at Lihou Island as well as Glaucium luteum, Scop. ;
both these species are new to the flora of Lihou.
During the winter 1 treated chemically the extremely
valuable herbarium belonging to the Society to try to preserve
it from mould and mites. Hach specimen was soaked in a
solution of corrosive sublimate, such as is usually employed
in herbaria.
R. METMAN,
Sec. Bot. Section.
~I
1912. | REPORTS. 35
Entomological Secretary’s Report of 1912.
On January 23rd I received a visit from Mr. G. Baker,
of 28, Victoria Road, who brought two specimens of the rare
and beautiful “hawk moth ” Cherocampa celeris.
1. Taken in Mr. Cluett’s bakehouse in the Bordage
two or three years ago, a singularly beautiful specimen,
probably a female.
2. Another, not in such good condition, taken by
Mr. Paul De La Mare more than 20 years ago and
preserved in a case of mixed insects.
So far as I know there have been records of only three
other specimens of this the “Silver-striped Hawk” for
Guernsey. ‘Two are in our museum and were bred by Mrs.
Boley from larve found on the vine ; and one other is in my
possession and was brought to me in a match-box by a friend
who had caught it at flowers of the tobacco plant, in
Rocquettes Lane, September, 1898.
Another important capture of a Hawk moth this season
constitutes a new record. On May 18th as I was walking
—revealing my “trade” by carrying a butterfly net—Mons.
Robert De La Morinerie, of Bailiff’s Cross, kindly introduced
himself to me, as one interested in Entomology, and invited
me to view a moth he had. It was still on the setting-board
and proved to be Deilephila livornica.
It had been taken May 9th within a quarter of a mile of
his house by Mons. R. Metman. This species, like the last, is
not truly at home so far north—south Europe is its natural
habitat. But it is a great migrant, and being a very strong
flier occasional specimens are taken in north-central Europe.
An unusual number have been recorded in England this year.
It is, however, new to our list.
It will interest our Society to hear that the larva of
Aeronycta aceris, found by the Rev. C. B. Lucas last August
crawling on a railing near St. Stephen’s Church, produced a
very fine moth in June of this year. It will be remembered
that this too is an addition to our Guernsey list.
It may also be worthy of mention that on March 14th I
took a fresh specimen of Hybernia Marginaria (progemmaria)
from the lintel of a door at Les Varendes, Rohais. This,
though a very common moth in England, has so far been taken
only three times in Guernsey, and by a strange chance each
time by shee
Contrary to the promise of the hot spring, 1912 has not
proved to be a “ Clouded-yellow” year, But Colias edusa was
358 REPORTS.
not uncommon on our cliffs in September. Mr. G. Baker
shewed me one of the variety Lelice from Icart. Heliophobus
hispidus came to light in my study. I mention this only
because it is a scarce insect here, and to be looked for only on
the sea coast. It was therefore a surprise to meet with it so
far inland and in the neighbourhood of the Town. On the
18th of September I was fortunate enough to take a female
specimen of Enpethecia coronata, resting on the trunk of a
Wych elm in my garden. This is its first record for
Guernsey. It is generally distributed in the South of
Fingland and rare in the north. There are two breeds a year,
one in the spring and early summer, the second in the late
autumn. One of its food plants is the common clematis.
To this very meagre account of local Entomology for the
past year I can add one observation of no little interest.
In September, 1909, I took in the lane beyond the Foulon
Cemetery two specimens of a pretty little “ micro,” which had
not before been noticed in the island, Yponomcuta cognatellus.
Its relative Y. padellus is very common and must be familiar
to most of you from its untidy habit of covering the hedges
with bunches of webs, upon which the dust collects, making
unsightly objects. These webs are full of little wriggling
larve which wander and devour all the foliage round.
This spring I noticed webs of larve in the hedge in the
lane where I had taken Y. cognatellus, and which I at once
guessed must belong to this species. I took a few home and
bred, as I expected, many specimens. But the shrub on which
the larve were feeding was unfamiliar to me. I had noticed
it on former occasions, and idly wondered what it might be,
but had not the same motive for particular enquiry. Now as
my family would eat nothing else, I had to make a pilgrimage
every few days to the Foulon to bring home their pabulum.
I therefore looked up the food plant of Y. cognatellus and
found that it feeds exclusively on the “ Spindle tree,” Huonymus
FEuropeus, and identified these bushes as this species. And
here is where I think the interest of my investigations comes
in. On reference to Mr. Marquand’s “Flora of Guernsey ”
we read p. 73 “Spindle tree’ alien. First record: Marquand
1891. Very rare. Two orthree bushes in a hedge, bordering
the lane at the back of Les Eperons, St. Andrew’s. As no
other station is known for this shrub, it can hardly be
indigenous, although it is fairly common in Normandy and the
south of England.”
This definite statement by the highest authority on the
Guernsey flora compels one to the conclusion that cognatellus
£ot2. | REPORTS. 359
is not truly a native but a naturalised alien. And, however,
and at whatever date, these few stunted bushes found a foot-
hold in Guernsey, they must have introduced Y. cognatellus
with themselves. It may well be a matter of wonder, not to
say admiration, how this little moth has been able to maintain
its existence ever siuce in such an extremely restricted area,
and upon so limited a food supply.
Frank E. Lowe, F.E.S.
Report of the Folklore Section, 1912.
CHANGING LOCAL OBSERVANCES.
Some of the members may perhaps recollect that last year
(1911) I referred to the gradual passing away and decadence
of the local Guy Fawkes celebration, which was probably
first introduced into Guernsey about the beginning of the
nineteenth century by a number of working-class immigrants
from the southern counties of England. And I drew attention
to the strange way in which this new comer—with its cheerful
bonfire for consuming the Guy—seems to have at once caught
on, and to have superseded the far older local rite of burying
the Bout-de- An, or the “ Old-Year’s-End,” which rite had
previously been carried out from time immemorial by suc-
cessive generations of Guernsey young people. The old name
of Boodlo (Bout-de-l An) was transferred to the Guy, and
thenceforward for about a century—with various processional
observances—this latter symbolical figure was burnt on the
evening of the Fifth of November, instead of being buried at
midnight on the last day of the Old Year.
Another Ceremonial Observance which seems to have been
introduced by these same English immigrants, was the raiding
of flower-gardens in the early morning of the First Sunday in
May. No doubt this last-named observance was originally
connected with the Old English ceremonial practice of going
out early on May-day morning to gather branches of greenery
wherewith to deck the Maypoles, and in various other ways to
testify the public rejoicing that Spring had come once more.
In this original connection the gathering of flowers and verdant
branches was a perfectly natural and reasonable thing to do.
They were taken from public woods or forests, they were used
for decorative purposes, and thus they served a definite end.
But the custom, when brought to Guernsey, seems to have lost
entirely its originally picturesque purpose, and to have dege-
nerated into a mere destructive and senseless raid. The prac-
360 REPORTS.
tice has now (1912) happily died out, but as I remember it
some forty years ago (say in the’ 70’s) it took a form some-
what as follows : Companies of young men and boys would
congregate together soon after daybreak on the morning in
question, and stroll through the country parishes, calling at
certain well-known houses where, on these occasions, a supply
of milk-punch could be obtained, and then, excited by these
unwonted rum-and-milk potations, the gangs continued their
stroll, and swooped down on any flower-garden they met with,
plucking off the blooms or uprooting the plants and afterwards
throwing them away. ‘There was no desire on the part of any
of the raiders—so far as I could ever learn—to keep the flowers,
or to carry them home. Their object apparently was achieved
when the plants were destroyed and torn in pieces. The
Island newspapers used to point out what very poor fun this
was, and the Hiditors further warned owners of gardens to be
on their guard against such depredations. Yet year after year,
the unreasonable raid went on, until a few years ago when
thanks, doubtless to the spread of education and the intro-
duction of newer and more worthy objects of interest, the
ancient practice gradually fell into disuse.
Another social change that 1s worth noting is the substi-
tution of the current Christmas festivities for the rejoicing’s
that formerly took place at the New Year. In this, Guernsey
used to follow the practice of France rather than that of
England. Of course, there was a certain religious observance
of Christmas. The Episcopal Churches had their prescribed
services, and our Roman Catholic friends prepared their
“cribs”; then again, there was the traditional Long Night
(Dec. 23)—a non-ecclesiastical observance—when the knitted
woollen goods (stockings and _ close-fitting jackets) were
packed for sale and export, with the accompaniment of a cer-
tain amount of mild jollification ; while on Christmas Eve the
country people crowded into town to buy and eat oranges and
roasted chestnuts. Yet still, although some of these obsery-
ances were ceremonially connected with Christmas, while
others of them were merely coincident with it; yet as regarded
the chief social functions and festivities, such as present-
civing, family-gatherings, &c., these all at that time clustered
Somal the New ay ear, rather oan round the Christmas season,
as they do now. The children in the different parishes used
to go about on New Year’s morning and call at the houses of
their friends and neighbours, to wish them a Happy New
Year, and to ask for a New Year's gift. This custom seems
now (1912) to have practically died out.
1912. ] REPORTS. 361
Christmas presents were not given formerly as they are
to-day ; it was all New Year’s gifts. The parcels-post in
those days did not exist. There were no Christmas Cards,
and the Christmas post, in comparison with the heavy mails
to which we are now accustomed, was ludicrously small. In
fact, I remember, that many years ago, the late Mr. Nicholas
Le Messurier, the then postmaster, at my request, very
kindly looked up some old postal statistics, and gave me
a copy of them. One item was that on a certain Christmas
day, the incoming mail from England consisted of one single
letter for the whole Island. I am sorry that [I cannot now
recall the particular year in which this incident occurred,
but it would be one of the early years of the last (19th)
century. I know I published the figures at the time in one
or more of the Guernsey newspapers, but I cannot at the
moment recollect even the approximate date of such publi-
cation. Still the record exists in some of the local newspaper
files and it may be accidentally lit upon any time.
J. Linwoop Pirrs, Sec. Folklore Sect.
Report of the Geological Section, 1912.
1.—Vazon Bay.
A patch of ancient beach was exposed in Vazon Bay
last January. It cannot be called a raised beach, because its
level is little above that of mean tide, and it is covered by the
deposits of the actual beach. It however resembles the
25 foot beach and there can be no doubt as to its antiquity.
2.—Rocquaine Bay.
Mr. A. Collenette reported the finding of a beach deposit
in sinking a well on the slope overlooking Rocquaine Bay,
under about 50 feet of deposited material, consisting chiefly
of clay with angular stones. The level of this beach probably
corresponds with that at Vazon referred to above.
3.— Mont Cuet.
Mr. Collenette also reported a new exposure of the
50 foot beach in a quarry recently opened in the higher part
of Mont Cuet.
4,—-Lowland Road, Vale.
In excavating for drains in this locality, diorite was
found at the surface, both at the cross-roads near Mr. J. E.
Dorey’s house, and at the site of the pumping station which
362 REPORTS.
has just been erected. Some of this diorite, although
thoroughly disintegrated, retains its blue colour. In the
hollow between these outcrops, a stratum of about 2 feet of
marine sand was found, underlaid by yellow earth (loess) and
that by clay with angular stones resting on the decomposed
diorite at a depth of 10 to 12 feet. This marine sand was
also found in the field where the pumping station is erected.
Here it is also about 2 feet in thickness, but rests directly on
the decomposed diorite.
5.—Pollet Street.
In the excavation on the site of No. 8, recently
demolished, a fine section of the yellow earth (loess) was
exposed to a depth of about 12 feet, the bottom not being
reached. This loess consisted, as usual, of two kinds of
layers, both composed of sand and clay but in different pro-
portions. The more sandy layers, which in this case greatly
predominatcd, are lighter in colour than the more clayey ones,
and their particles are coarser, but none of the clay was
sufficiently fine to remain in suspension in water for any
length of time. The whole of the material appears to be
derived from the disintegrated gneiss of the district, and the
grains are not rounded in any appreciable degree, showing they
have not travelled far. The layers are as usual irregular and
somewhat contorted.
C. G. De La Marg, Sec. Geol. Sect.
Report of the Marine Zoological Section, 1912.
I am sorry that there is very little to report this year.
It is most unfortunate that, although we possess in
Guernsey and the neighbouring islands almost unparalleled
opportunities for Marine Zoological investigations, due not
only to the physical conditions of our coastline, but also to
the exceptionally large rise and fall of the tide here, we are
still without workers. The only addition to our list this year,
and one that I cannot find recorded as having been discovered
anywhere else, and therefore not yet named, is a variety of
the daisy anemone—Sagartia bellis—with bright red tentacles.
Five specimens were discovered by myself in a crevice of rock
near Moulin Huet in September.
For about a fortnight in June we had carried to our
shores—principally along the Western coast—enormous
numbers of two tropical and sub-tropical marine creatures.
Physalia, the “ Portuguese Man-of-War,” and a_ smaller
1912. REPORTS. 363
creature, Velella; of both of these I secured a number of
specimens.
Nearly every year a few of these animals are reported as
having been found on the Western coast of Ireland and the
South-Western coast of Iingland, but there is no previous
record of them for Guernsey. Nearly every day for about a
fortnight, however, they were reported to me, and one day a
fleet of some thousands was floating off the S.W. corner of
the island.
Curiously, whenever the Portuguese Man-of-War has
been discovered along the British coast, careful search has
revealed the presence of Velella also, so that Mr. Hughes—
as recorded by (Gosse—terms Velella “the Attendant
Satellite” of Physalia. I think, however, that this is simply
due to the fact that the two forms are both so very common
in the warmer parts of the Atlantic Ocean that any current
which carries one of them to us is almost certain to convey
the other also. Their presence on the Guernsey coast in such
large numbers seems to point to some increase in volume and
deflection eastward of that branch of the Grulf stream which
runs northward past the West coast of Ireland, aided also
probably by the long succession of Westerly winds ex-
perienced during the past summer.
F. L. Tanner, Sec., Marine Zoology Section.
Report of the Ornithological Section, 1912.
Once again the wryneck, chiff-chaff, swallow, and other
sweet feathered songsters that charm us so with their presence
during the spring and summer months, have paid their yearly
visit to the old home, and are now returned with their
numerous progeny to those warmer soutbern latitudes
frequented by them during our winter season.
The why and the wherefor of bird migration still remains
a mystery. Many theories have been put forward to account
for it, and surely, if slowly, facts in connection with the
phenomenon are being established, but the key to the riddle
—the original impulse—still awaits solution.
As, however, practically all birds, I believe, are now
proved to migrate in a small or large way, may it not be that
migration in the wider sense had its beginning in very short
journeys indulged in by some species, perhaps for no very
particular reason, and that gradually through long ages these
journeys have lengthened out in both directions, until brief
364 REPORTS.
“ flittings ” shall we say, that were in no way worthy the name
migration have slowly developed into the complicated and
elaborate system we are interested witnesses of to-day.
However this may be, the fascinating subject is occupying the
close attention of many bird-lovers, and each year new
knowledge is being brought to light, confirmatory or otherwise
of existing theories.
The question is often asked as to the whence and whither
of the swallows which for some five months of the year—from
May to September—frolic and gambol around us. Silently
and unannounced they appear in the spring; silently and
without word of farewell they disappear in the autumn.
Whence came they and whither do they go ?
The question is answered in a recently published little
book, “The Migration of Birds,” by Mr. T. A. Coward
(Cambridge Manuals of Science and Literature). The author
Says :—
4 “Our swallow and its congeners have an almost
cosmopolitan range, summering in the Northern and
wintering in the Southern Hemisphere or comparatively
near to the Equator in the Northern. Towards the centre
of its range its migrations are either short or the bird is
non-migratory.
Mr. W. L. Sclater, addressing the South African
Ornithologists’ Union, stated that the swallow arrives at
Cape Town at the end of October, and is common
from November to March ; practically all have left by the
middle of April. Swallows begin to arrive from the south
in Africa north of the Sahara in the latter half of February ;
early in March they reach Southern Europe, later in the
same month they are in Central Europe, and by the middle
of April large numbers arrive in England., Thus swallows
leave South Africa actually after they have arrived in
England; the South African birds cannot be the same
which are in North Africa a month earlier! The swallow
supports Seebohm’s thesis that the individuals which go
farthest to the south in winter, breed farthest north. A
day-migrant and by no means a rapid one, the swallow
may be timed from place to place, and it is no presumption
to suggest that the birds which reach Britain to nest come
from lands little south of the Sahara and well north of the
Kquator, and that those which pass through England and
along our shores in May and even in June are on their
way from Southern Africa to the northernmost limits of
their range.”
With these introductory remarks I shall now tell you
about the 1912 summer birds of passage that have come under
1912. ] REPORTS. 365
my notice, or of which I have been very kindly supplied wita
notes by other ovservers. To all those whose names appear
in the following paragraphs I tender hearty thanks for their
valued co-operation with me in this interesting branch of our
Society's work. My own field of observation being practically
limited to St. Martin’s, I feel my notes would be of little
worth were they not so copiously supplemented by those of
others.
Chiff-Chaff.—On exactly the same date as last year, viz., March 22nd, this
always early spring visitor announced its arrival for the season. I heard
the bird that morning in the Bon Air Valley, at St Martin’s. On the
25th 1 again heard the pleasing note at the same spot and also at the
bottom of the Water Lane at Moulin Huet. By the end of the month
the bird was to be heard everywhere. Since 1908 the observed date of
arrival of the Chiff-Chaff has been on one of the six days, March 22nd to
27th, which seems to point to a very regular return of the bird to its
summer haunts. The bird was heard as usual all through the summer,
but not up to as late a date as generally recorded. Asa rule the note is
still to be heard in the early days of October, but this year I did not hear
it after September 29th. For some reason or other the cheerful little
Chiff-Chaff is not nearly so well known as for instance the Cuckoo, or the
Wryneck, and yet it has a note quite as much all its own. The
note of this little bird was very beautifully described by Morris when he
wrote: ‘‘ The song, frequently heard overhead from the upper part of
some tall tree . . . . falls on the ear with a ringing sound, re-
minding one of the faint chime of the distant village church bell.’’
Wheatear.—Mr. J. S. Hocart reports seeing a Wheatear on Lancresse
Common on April 3rd, and his last date for seeing one is October 12th.
My own dates for the urrival and departure of this bird fall between Mr.
Hocart’s, for the first I saw was one on the Petit Port cliffs at St.
Martin’s on April 28th, and I saw none after October 7th, on the after-
noon of which day several were still to be seen along the coast road
between Pleinmont and L’Erée. Our dates this year are late for the
arrival of the bird and early for its departure.
Wryneck.—April 3rd appears to have been the date of arrival of the
Wryneck, or Mackerel bird as it is better known. On that day it was
heard by Jurat Kinnersly at Le Varclin, by my wife at Les Blanches,
and by Mrs. Allés at La Croix Bertrand, all at St. Martin’s. Myself and
others heard the bird the next day. At Torteval the Rev. R. H.
Tourtel first heard the cry on the 10th; it was heard in the neighbour-
hood of the Victoria Hotel, St. Saviour’s, on the 14th, and by Mr. Hocart
at Lancresse on the 25th. Mr. Tourtel has given me no date for last
hearing the bird, and Mr. Hocart wrote me: ‘‘it disappeared from our
locality [Lancresse] in the beginning of June.’’ At St. Martin’s I con-
tinued hearing this migrant frequently until past the third week in July,
not in numbers of course, but singly here and there (at Fermain, at Les
Blanches, and in the Petit Bot Valley), and heard it for the last time in
Fermain Bay lane on July 24th. Our Transactions give but one later
date. In 1908 Mr. Hocart heard it as late as the 30th.
Cuckoo.—This, the best known, and most eagerly anticipated of all our bird
visitors, was first heard by Mr. C. G. de la Mare on April 18th, at the
Haye du Puits ; it was also heard on the same day in the neighbourhood
of the Victoiia Hotel, at St. Saviour’s. The following day my notes
show that it was heard at widely separated spots, for Mr. 8. M. Henry
reports hearing the call in the grounds at Havilland Hall both morning
and evening; my brother-in-law, Mr. G. F. Allés, heard it at Moulin
366 REPORTS.
Huet; Mr. Tourtel did so at Torteval, and Mr. R. P. Spencer heard one
at Alderney also, and gives that day as the date of its arrival in that
island. On the 20th myself and several others at St. Martin’s came
within range of the welcome, if monotonous, song. At Lancresse the
bird, according to Mr. Hocart, was first heard on the 23rd. A pleasing
experience of mine in recent years has been to saunter along the cliff
path below the Courtes Fallaizes at Moulin Huet, in the twilight of the
early days of July, and listen to a Cuckoo calling from one of the Vallon
trees. I looked forward to a similar treat this season, but was dis-
appointed. Whether my friend of past summers is dead or has betaken
himself to pastures new I know not, but certain it is, the old familiar
sound did not once come to me, as I loitered about the neighbourhood in
the growing dusk of the first week of July. My own date indeed for last
hearing the Cuckoo this year is so singularly early (June 18th at Les
Tielles, Torteval), I am more than usually glad to be able to supplement
my own observations with notes made by others, and thus give proof
that the Cuckoo continued to sing as late, practically, as in other years.
On June 23rd Mr. Tourtel still heard the bird at Torteval ; on the 28th
Mr. Hocart heard it for the last time at the Vale; on June 30th Miss E.
Henry heard the call in the grounds at Havilland Hall, and on July 2nd
Miss E. Lenfestey heard it at St. Peter’s-in-the-Wood. At Sark it was
heard by Mrs. Henry, Vallée du Creux, on July Ist, and on August 2nd
Capt. Henry saw two birds in that island. An interesting fact in con-
nection with the sojourn of the Cuckoo with us this year is, I think,
worthy of putting on record. On May 14th, in the morning, I heard a
Cuckoo in one of the gardens below Clifton Hall. Many years ago—
twenty or more—one was heard there regularly for several summers in
succession. From that time to this I had never heard the bird so close to
the heart of the town.
Swallow.—Swallows were not late in putting in an appearance this Spring.
Mr. George J. Tourtel, of St. Martin’s, saw two flying about over the
Moulin Huet cliffs on the morning of April 9th, and Mr. Hocart, for the
Vale, has written: ‘‘I saw three Swallows together, as if arriving, on
April 11th.’? (Our earliest recorded date in the Transactions for first
seeing Swallows is April 6th.) On April 16th Mr. E. Rammell saw three
at St. Andrew’s, and on the same day Mr. Spencer saw one while crossing
to Alderney. Several members of our Society, including the writer, saw
their first Swallow at Les Tielles on April 20th. We were out there cave
exploring, and the plump little fellow flew past us as we tramped along
the top of the cliff. It was many days after this before the birds became
numerous, but their number gradually increased with the advent of May,
until, to all appearance, the invaders were as plentiful as in recent years.
About their departure Mr. Hocart’s observations confirm my own: that
the birds left us earlier than usual. Mr. Hocart saw none at the Vale
after October 2nd. I think the bulk of them must have left on the last
days of September—on the 29th they were still numerous at Les Blanches,
and on the 80th I observed some congregating on the telegraph wires at
the top of George-road. After this date, with one exception (October 13th)
I only saw an occasional straggler or two—on some days none at all—
and the last, four, circling round the Old Mill at St. Martin’s. in bright
sunshine, on October 27th.
House Martin.—On April 24th Mr. G. J. Tourtel saw a couple of House
Martins at Moulin Huet Bay, but I did not chance to see any until
May 6th, on the evening of which day several were flying about over
George-road. Although at the very end of the season House Martins
were exceedingly plentiful it seems to me we have had fewer than usual
with us this summer. During the early part of October I saw them in
abundance both at the Forest and St. Martin’s, but very few were
observed after the 12th. On the morning of the 30th some six or eight
were sporting about at the top of George-road, and I saw the last at the
Hote. | REPORTS. 367
same spot on the following day. The House Martin, like the Swallow,
apparently took its departure earlier than usual, for as a rule they are
still to be seen well into November. Last year, too, the latest date for
seeing the bird was a remarkably early one, none being observed after
October 29th.
Sand Martin.—This summer’s observations again support the belief that
the Sand Martin does not nest here and that those seen are merely passing
through on their way further north. The only time this year that I saw
the bird was on April 23rd, when I noticed several flying about over the
Courtes Fallaizes cliffs above Moulin Huet, at St. Martin’s.
Swift.—The same, fortunately, cannot be said of that most interesting and
graceful bird, the Swift—the last of the Swallow tribe to arrive, and the
first to leave us. The Swift not only nests here, but, I am glad to say,
is becoming increasingly abundant. On May 6th Miss Kathleen Tardif
saw one at Fermain Bay, and on the evening of the same day I saw two
of the little Town Church band. The next day more of the church party
had azrived, and on the 9th the company was apparently in full force.
On the 10th one flew over our garden at Les Blanches in the morning.
For three months or rather more the birds were delightfully en evidence
everywhere—in town and country, on the cliffs and inland. As last year
we lost sight of them very early I kept a particularly close watch on these
elusive members of our feathered visitors this summer, and in this I had
the valued assistance of Mr. EK. D. Marquand, who was spending a holiday
here during August and part of September. Swifts continued numerous
all through August (last year very few were seen after July) and the
beginning of September ; from my notes I see that the Town Church
band was still in full. force on August 10th, and at Havilland, St.
Martin’s, a party numbering a dozen or more were seen by me almost
daily up to September 11th. The next day I saw a solitary one at Les
Maindonnaux, St Martin’s, and the last on the 13th, not far from
Morley Chapel. Mr. Marquand noted some daily up to September 8th,
including one flying about north of Bordeaux on the 6th. Mr.
Marquand’s last date for seeing the bird was the 14th (one day later than
myself) when he and his son saw one flying about over St. Martin’s Point.
Cornerake.—The Corncrake has again been very little heard this summer.
To me it is pretty clear that the bird comes to the island in much
smaller numbers than formerly. This is probably owing to the steady
covering over of the land with dwelling and glass-houses and the break-
ing-up of what was once grass land into gardens, making it more and
more difficult for the bird to find cover. The ‘‘ curious creaking cry ”’ of
the Corncrake used to be one of the delights of a summer’s evening walk
in the country, and it was pleasant too to hear the sound breaking the
stillness on a bright moonlight night. Now one listens for it 1n vain.
This year’s observations are limited to three notes, all included within
the small space of eight days. On May 7th Mr. George F. Allés heard
the bird calling in the field opposite Morley chapel. ‘lwo days later I
heard the note in the same field both morning and evening, and on the
14th I chanced to hear the sound once more—this time in the neighbour-
hood of Oberland, at St. Martin’s. The Rev. R. H. Tourtel wrote from
Torteval that he had not heard the bird this season.
Ring Ousel.—At last the Ring Ousel has been caught halting here when on
the northward, or spring migration. Jurat Kinnersly saw one at Calais,
St. Martin’s, on April 24th, and watched it for some considerable time.
Our Transactions have recorded the occurrence of the bird here in the
autumn on several occasions, but never until this year has it been reported
as occurring in the spring. Cecil Smith, in The Birds of Guernsey (1879),
wrote to the effect that he had no authentic evidence of the Ring Ousel
having ever been seen here in the spring or summer, but added that it
might occasionally visit the island in the spring migration.
368 REPORTS.
Blackstart.—Mr. R. P. Spencer reports seeing a Blackstart at Lihou Island
on May 5th, and Mr. Hocart saw one while crossing Lancresse Common
on November 8th.
Nightjar.—An interesting note comes from Mr. Hocart to the effect that a
boy took him a young Goatsucker (or Nightjar) for identification on
September 17th. Mr. Hocart writes: ‘‘ Being a bird of nocturnal habits
itis little known and may probably often be mistaken for an Owl when
flying in the dark.’’ Cecil Smith wrote in 1879 of the Nightjar as being
a ‘‘regular autumnal visitant,’’ and added that a few perhaps arrived in
the spring and remained to nest. Mr. Hocart, I may add, considers that
the bird taken to him was born here.
Moorhen.—A Moorhen which has wintered regularly at Sausmarez Manor,
St. Martin’s, for several years past, has again made its appearance there.
It was seen for the first time this autumn on September 25th by Mr.
Harold Smith. The bird always disappears in the early spring. A
reference was made to this bird in last year’s report and the suggestion
thrown out that it is probably one of several Moorhens imported into
Saumarez Park at the Catel some years ago. Apparently this bird
prefers to live apart from its kind during the winter. In any case its
regular appearance at St. Martin’s in the autumn and its as regular dis-
appearance in the spring is worth noting.
Bartailed Godwit.—Mr. Spencer shot a Bartailed Godwit at Vazon on
October 31st. It was in winter plumage. A few days later Mr.
Spencer saw several more of these birds.
BasiLt T. RowswEtu,
Sec. Ornith. Section.
NOTE ON A DEPOSIT OF GLACIAL CLAY
AND ITS CONTENTS
AT AN ELEVATION OF 300 FEET ABOVE O.D., MARCH, 1912,
ST. MARTIN’S ROAD (Behind No. 4 House).
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE.
0
AN opening was made in the back garden of the house known
as “ Brooklyn,” St. Martin’s Road, and was excavated
to a depth of 7 feet and about 4 feet square. The
first found distinct layer was 1 foot
of soil which graded gradually into
underlying clay. At a depth of 4
feet the clay, which was soft
and extremely plastic, perceptibly
changed colour, and then ceased
altogether. The clay was a dirty
grey colour but became yellow as
the rain fell on it. Under the clay
was a soft yellow gravel of exactly
the colour of the gravel of St.
Germain, Catel.
From the clay, as it was exca-
vated in layers of about 5 inches
depth at a time, were taken all the
exhibits accompanying this note.
The small boulders and _ the
pebbles were distributed over the
whole deposit, but the lowest foot
contained a larger number than the
upper layers.
Worked flints were also found,
there being a tendency to con-
centrate in the middle of the
: deposit.
Two pieces of bone were also found in the lower levels.
The bone was much worn and was a mere shell, but the curves
enabled it to be determined by Dr. A. 8. Woodward, of the
British Museum, as “ Pig,” but the species was undetermin-
able.
370 NOTE ON GLACIAL CLAY.
The pebbles and boulders were of all sorts of rocks, show-
ing that, the beach from which they were moved was of large
area.
The vein and trap rocks contributed a fair proportion
and the gneiss of the upper lands was represented, but there
were pebbles of two rocks not now known as local. These
will be determined later on.
There were angular stones of various sizes in the gravel,
but they belonged to the rock which gave rise to the gravel
and were therefore 7 situ.
The pit therefore consisted of (a) decomposed gneiss, red
in colour and without foliation and undisturbed; (6) clay
which had been deposited with its contents from surface at a
distance.
The rocks represented and the different sizes of the
pebbles indicated the carrying by some moving agent.
The clay and its contents were deposited continuously
and from above. There was a complete absence of stratifica-
tion, hence the clays cannot have been water deposited from
streams.
The appearances and the contents are consistent with the
deposition by floating or melting ice.
I therefore tentatively associate the deposit with ice
movement, which would easily have collected and deposited
the clay and its contents. ,
The flints are indefinite as to age and might be referred,
by different persons, to late Paleolithic or Marly Neolithic
Age.”
R The deposit, being glacial, favours the opinion of the
flints being Paleolithic, and if this is confirmed it is practically
the first indication of Paleolithic man in Guernsey.
The pebbles give undoubted proof of the prior existence
of a beach at a higher elevation than 300 feet. This has been
long suspected, but no satisfactory proof has previously been
met with.
The points raised by this find are :—
1. Man in Guernsey prior to the last local glaciation.
2. Submergence to a greater depth than 300 feet
probably during glacial epoch.
3. Movements of local ice caps.
4, Evidences of great changes of climate.
5. Total disappearance of the land surface which
contributed to the deposit.
5 * The flints were examined in Oxford by Mr. R. M. Marrett and Dr, Arthur
vans.
372 NOTE ON GLACIAL CLAY.
ST. MARTIN’S ROAD.—EXHIBITS.
No. 1.—24x21xd3m. Scraper of blackish-grey flint. Knocked
flake off at B. Curve A much worn. Flaking crude.
No. 2.—31 x 21x1m. Scraper. Grey flint. Flaked into hollow
curves at A and B. Edge of B serrated. Much used.
No. 3.—36 x 23x 7m. Pointed scraper, very rough. No sign of
use. Probably discarded. Cherty-grey flint.
No. 4.—26x15x6m. Scraper. Grey flint. Cutting edges at
A and B roughened. Curve at C smoothed by use.
2 punch marks (1m.), one of which slipped down the
line D-E, scoring it and removing two curved fiakes at
EK and D-B. |
No. 5.—l14x11x5m. Flake. Showing bulk of concussion.
Probably flaked off larger piece already partly shaped.
No. 6.—29 x 24x6m. Grey flint scraper, much worn at A.
No, 7.—20x 14x4m. Grey flint scraper, worn to a 7
edge at A and smoothed by scraping at B.
No. 8.—22 x 20x dm. Grey flint scraper, much flaked tA,
evidently an attempt to produce a cutting edge with
attempts to limit area at B and C, but a failure.
No. 9.—26x13x7m. Grey flint scraper, probably originally
edged at A, but now edge irregular and spoiled.
No. 10.—Dark flint. Undoubtedly flaked, but unfinished.
No. 11.—41x17x1lm. Grey flint. Very rough. One sharp
edge at A. .
No. 12.—20 x 14x 7m. Grey flint scraper. One cutting edge
at A.
14 small flint chippings.
18 medium a
6 large “s from shapings of cores.
1 large flint core—doubtful.
ee 55 —much worn by attrition since losing chips.
2 small cores, also worn by attrition, but less so.
®) pieces of baked clay. Not recognised as pottery. May be
accidentally baked on side of fire. The true position of
these is doubtful, they may have fallen from upper layers
in working.
1 resinous fluxed mass of doubtful origin.
l bone. Humerus of a young pig. Species undeterminable
owing to incompleteness.
1 bone splinter. Undeterminable.
08 pebbles, worn and sub-angular, beach derived.
1 very large ditto and 1 sub-angular ditto.
NOTES ON THE GEOLOGICAL RESULTS OF
THE EXCURSIONS.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
0
ALTHOUGH I have been asked to speak of the results of the
excursions, presumably those organised and planned by the
Committee, I shall to-night consider myself free to include
many which have occurred and which were hurriedly organised
to investigate finds reported either by, or to, our members, for
these have a place in our summer’s work.
The excursions, although spoken of under the heading of
“ Geological,” will include some in which the interest was
more “ Antiquarian ” than geological.
This year I have written under the following sub-heads :
(a) Caves; (6) Rocks; (c) Superficial Deposits ; (d) Anti-
quities.
Caves.
I regret to say that the search for signs of occupation of
caves by prehistoric man has resulted in failure.
The search was confined to two caves, that over the arch
at Les Tielles and the Dog’s Cave (Creux au Chien). In
neither cave was it considered necessary to organise working
parties. The Tielles cave was difficult of access, but Mr.
H. Le Messurier and Mr. Tanner made the descent from the
cliff by means of ropes and succeeded in examining the cave
which, they reported, had a very shallow earth bottom which
gave no indication of man’s occupation.
A large party went down the cliff to the “ Dog’s Cave,”
the work being made easy by ladders and ropes. The cave
was found to agree with the description already published.*
The search party consisted largely of our prominent members,
who gave no hope of the cave proving of value.
Rocks.
Owing to the interest attached to the statement made by
the Rev. EK. Hill and Prof. Bonney, that the so-called horn-
blend schist of Plemmont Point proved to he, under petrolo-
gical microscopic examination, an altered shale, one of the
outings of the Society was organised (and was well attended )
to view the rock in sztw.
* See Transactions 1895, fol. 13; 1896, fol. 88; 1911, fol. 280.
374 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
The geological section spent the time in examining the
rock, its intrusion (mica trap) and its junction with the gneiss.
Of its schistose structure there can be no doubt, and its being
placed, by the members, in the hornblend-schist series is, [
think, excusable, for in the field there is nothing, if we except
its unusual thickness, to lead to a different opinion. At pre-
sent the origin of the rock must rest on the petrographical
evidence, but it may well be that the Society may find field
evidence to support the microscopic later on.
I have taken the opportunity while visiting quarries
during my official work of taking notice of all the hornblend
schist met with. In most cases I have been able to trace the
schistose portions to more compact portion of the dykes.
In one case, at Richmond, I was unable to do this, and
the schist and gneiss were so irregularly mixed that it was
dificult to say which was the older rock, but ultimately I came
to the conclusion that the schist was intrusive and that its
intrusion had shattered the gneiss and so permitted its admis-
sion into lenticular cracks.
While on this subject I may say that one of the pieces
of stone found in the clay at St. Martin’s Road was a piece
of a schistose character. In Mr. De La Mare’s opinion
it much resembled in appearance the Cambrian schist of
Cherbourg.
It happened that this piece, found in what I consider to
be glacial clay, was striated, and it became important to
determine whether it was the schist and therefore brought by
ice from France, or hornblend schist, which occurs in many
places on the high land here.
As I have always considered that a local ice cap explains
this deposit of clay (one of several) I decided to send speci-
mens to England for examination microscopically.
I therefore forwarded :—
No. 1.—A piece of the Cherbourg schist.
No. 2.—The striated stone from the clay.
No. 3.—Hornblend schist from Les Tielles.
The third piece was chosen with a view of deciding if it
belonged to the Pleinmont outcrop of shale or not, for at Les
Tielles the schistose rock can be followed until a compact
greenstone dyke, from which it originates, is reached.
I may say that the hand specimens look very much alike,
although there are differences of colour and texture, and that
these differences had had the effect of our forming a correct
classification.
I herewith give the replies received.
1912. ] NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS. 375
REPORT ON ROCKS.
1.—CHERBOURG.—“ This rock has a schistose aspect
“and has been obviously much affected by pressure, being
. wad fissile. In colour it is a pale greenish-grey, resembling
‘a phyllite more than a normal crystalline schist. Under
“the microscope a slice gives indications of stratification
‘(more or less disturbed) by a slight banding of the material.
* It shows much mineral change, ¢ on a reall scale, consisting
“of a pale green flaky mineral, the exact nature of which—
“ whether a “hydrous biotite or a chlorite (neither very rich in
“iron) is dificult to determine, but one or two larger flakes,
“here and there present, induce me to think it the former.
“There are numerous very minute needles (? rutile) and a
“clear mineral, which probably represents a felspar ; much of
it, at any rate, very likely secondary. The rock has
; general resemblance to phyllitic slates of early Cambrian or
“late Pre-Cambrian age.”
This rock is therefore microscopically what it is known
to be in the field.
No. 2.—F rom GLACIATED CLAY, GUERNSEY.—“ This
“is more distinctly green in colour than No. 1, looks more
“powdery, but is distinctly fissile (cleavage). Under the
“microscope the slice shows distinctly a cleavage foliation,
“with signs of great crushing. The constituent minerals are
* partly ‘the above-named green mica, or chlorite (minute),
“partly a felspathic constituent in association with it, some-
“times earthy looking (probably from crushing and decom-
“ position). Here and there is a rather long phacoidal lenticle,
“composed of the same minerals, but the felspathic is more
“‘fragmental in aspect and rather larger. Occasional spots
“and lines of a brown staining, and not a few microliths, both
“clear and opaque, but too irregular in shape or small in size
“for identification. It is difficult to be sure, but I incline to
“reoard it as a highly crushed and altered diabase rather than
“a pressure modified sediment. Microscopic examination
“does not suggest a close affinity to the Cherbourg rock,
“to which, in the hand specimen, it has a fair resemblance.”
It is therefore consistent with the whole facts to say that
the clay specimen is locally derived.
No. 3.—Fiss1Le GREEN ScHIsT FROM LES TIELLES.
—‘‘ This is certain, that the rock has been greatly crushed,
“ owing to that, its structure and, perhaps, its mineral character.
“The microscope shows a oreat deal of rather wavy pale-
“‘oreen micaceous mineral, probably a hydrous biotite rather
376 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
“than a chlorite, embedded in a matrix generally inert to
“ polarized light, but in it are scattered small pieces (of rather
“fragmental aspect) of a clear mineral like a felspar, also
“little grains and granules of a brownish mineral, sometimes
“semi-transparent with a few clear slightly yellow granules
“and possibly sometimes epidote. I think there is a little
“rutile. Comparison of this slice (and specimen) with some
“from the Alps leads one to think it was once a diabase
“(probably a dyke) which has been greatly crushed and
“changed into a sort of green schist.”
During our visit to the Tielles Cave I collected a piece,
one of many lying on the foreshore, where it evidently had
fallen from the cliff, a compact, granular-looking yellow
rock. This specimen presented difficulties, and before ventur-
ing to name it I thought it best to have expert opinion on it,
which is as follows :—
No. 4.—Les T1rLLes.—* Very difficult to be sure about
“this. Much stained with limonite and altered, but probably
“by the action of water, not pressure, but under the micros-
“cope a rather minutely crystalline structure can be traced.
“The felspars, now greatly changed and prebably replaced to
“some extent by secondary products, and the augite are no
“longer easily recognised. It is possible that a number of
“tiny brown, wavy semi-transparent rods may be connected
“with the latter mineral. It looks at first like a hard
“‘mud-stone, but may be really a decomposed compact
“ diabase.”
Owing to the indefinite opinion expressed I have not yet
named the specimen.
While at work on the schists I was fortunate enough to
find in situ the following :—(a) Amphibole-schist. Greenish
amphobolite. This occurred at St. Sampson’s, and its schis-
tose structure was so marked that the workmen thought it to
be slate.
Not far from this position I obtained a specimen of what
I suppose to be a mica-schist. I also obtained, in Herm, a
specimen of serpentine schist.
Superficial Deposits.
Breacuurs.—The term “raised beaches” which has found
a place in every geological report must now give place to
the shorter term, for we have, as previously reported,
recorded submarine deposits.
The excursion to Pleinmont, besides its other uses, was
taken advantage of to view the position of the lower level
1912.] NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESUL'IS. 377
beach at Pleinmont, where, while sinking wells, a deposit
was found, inland, at a lower depth than the present beach.
During the excursion to Lihou Island a patch of beach
near the causeway was shown by Mr. Curtis, but as this
looked a little doubtful it will need a more careful examination
than we were able to give it to determine if it is old beach or
only pebbles washed down.
It will be remembered that one patch of submerged
beach was found at Vazon and previously reported, so that we
now have three positions for this beach level.
I have been able this year to place some of the gravel
deposits in a definite order, thus : I have found, in two places,
well-marked gravel deposits under, but belonging to the 25ft.
beach, and I have also found white blown sand under the
cliff head rubble, but overlying the 25ft. beach. The white
sand is wind-blown and probably marks the upper part of the
beach where it exists. This was between the Monument and
Divette. At Noirmont, on the Miellette side of the Hougue,
the following deposits can be seen in the following order:
Decomposed rock—clay layer probably washed down from
top of Hougue—rubble band. Then on the side of the
Hougue at a higher level are the remains of the 50ft. beach
as far as its extent goes on this side of the deposit and below
is a bed of gravel belonging to this beach.
We therefore now have the gravel beds underlying three
raised beaches, but belonging to them. I do not think that
this has been previously reported.
At Divette I have established the following order of
deposits :
1. Upper Clay—fairly plastic ... . 4 feet.
2. Upper Rubble—angular stones of simalll fear
the upper clay washed in ... Reon aed 3
3. Rubble and Gravel Bands
4, Fluviatile Sandy Clay...
Blown Sand (white).
5. 25-foot Beach ~ Pebbles.
Gravel Qred jin.
Whether the middle band of clay i is the same as that
to be spoken of next, which contains shells, or not, is still
undetermined. Mr. Derrick reported concretions as occurring
at Divette, but I have not been able to place them.
feet.
Co Rr 0 © OS
Concretions
IN CLAY. KNOWN AS “LOSSMANCHEN.”’
In our Transactions former geological notes contain refer-
ences to concretions in clay at Divette, Fermain, St. Martin’s
378 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
Point and La Moye Point. As far as my own observations
go the layers found at St. Martin’s Point are much the
best example of this formation. Here we have practically
four bands of varying depth of from 38 or 4 inches to 12 to 16
inches.
These concretions are hard and not capable of being
broken by hand, but with the hammer they break easily with
a friable fracture, showing granular surfaces. In the fractures
are found minute pieces of shell, frequently with a cast of the
shell originally enclosed but now dissolved. There are also
found whole shells (to be described later), but, with one
exception, these shells have not been found in the clay deposit.
The concretions are covered and interlayered by clay
in which there is comparatively little sand. The clay itself
is layered, hence is of fluviatile origin.
The mode of origin of the concretions appears to be
as follows: A mild period, as regards climate, enabled the
shell life to exist, but probably hot summers and cold winters
followed each other with greater extremes of temperature
than at present. This would cause the washing down of clay,
shells and vegetable matter, and would also account for the
stratification noticed in this deposit.*
Assuming that the shells were equally divided among the
clay of the deposit, but now are found in the concretions
only, we may take it that the shells themselves have caused
the concretions.
The solution of the carbonate and phosphate of lime has
formed the clay into an indurated cement, the concretion being,
in fact, a natural concrete. The water thus charged with
lime penetrated a few inches only and then its lime formed
the first layer of concrete. This being impervious arrested
the action, as far as the underlying clay is concerned, but the
band would naturally thicken above until all the shells in the
immediate super-imposed clay were dissolved.
The layers being four in number, and at distances varying
from 1 to 2 feet, show that the processes of deposition and
solution were arrested and resumed at least four times. Of
course these bands, being on the eroded edge of the cliff,
are only slight remnants of much larger deposits and their
horizontal position points to a past flat area extending over the
present sea at an elevation of nearly 50 feet.
At Divette and Fermain I cannot trace the bands, but find
that the clay in which they were has slipped and the con-
*The stratification is not visible everywhere, but is well seen at Divette, St.
Martin’s Point and Fermain.
1912.] NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS. 379
cretions are broken up. The shells are more numerous in the
clay and the concretions are smaller and the bands thinner.
The band of clay at Fermain appears to have suffered less
and the shells have escaped solution.
The Fermain deposit studied alone would give a false
impression of the mode of formation, the slip having mixed
the various bands and rubble, but the bands of concretions,
mn situ, at St. Martin’s Point, give, I think, a clear idea of
the process.
All along the coast the underlying rubble head has been
cemented into a solid breccia. This solid mass falls from
the cliffs and lies unbroken on the rocks below.
Whatever the age of the concretions there is no possible
doubt that the clay deposit is old, for it is intermediate
between two bands of rubble head.
I shall now quote a few authors so as to obtain an
idea of these formations.
Beginning with our Transactions we find the concretions
described in the geological notes of former excursions. ‘They
are spoken of by Dr. Andrew Dunlop, in a paper read before
our Society,f as occurring in Jersey. The paragraph con-
taining the reference appears to me to deal with more than
one deposit of clay, although the author speaks of one deposit
only (“ The clay is generally unstratified,” &c.). The author
writes: “It (the clay) contains ‘ race ’—fantastically shaped
concretions resembling the ‘ Mannchen’ or ‘ Puppchen’ of
the German Loess.” Again: “The clay is generally unstra-
tified, but occasionally distinct bedding in fine layers is
observed.”
In Guernsey we have, so far, found the concretions
in the sea-eroded cliff. There is no statement in Dr. Dunlop’s
paper as to their occurrence in inland clay or on the
coast only. Mr. Sinelf in a recent work draws attention
to these concretions in “diluvial clay” at La Motte, Jersey.
He, however, makes a definite statement which we may look
upon as filling the gap in Dr. Dunlop’s paper, for he says:
“In the diluvial clay of La Motte there is an abundance
of the curious erratically shaped lime concretions known as
‘ Léssmanchen’ or ‘ Lésspuppen.’ The concretions are formed
around organic nuclei . . pee) willie presence of
these lime concretions in the clay of La Motte, and in that
and no other part of the island§ has long proved a puzzle to
local geologists, but the recent discovery of the large burial
* See folio 254, vol. 1898. +t Transactions for 1898, fol. 218.
t Geology of Jersey, fol. 24. § The italics are mine.—A. C
380 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
mound . . . above this diluvial clay affords a solution of
the problem and points clearly to whence the line was derived.”
If Mr. Sinel is correct the concretions will occur
wherever there is a source of lime. I see no objection to this
view in theory, but I have found that the lime in the inland
clay has not, as far as at present observed, had the effect.
Evidently, as far as Guernsey and Jersey are concerned, the
concretions occur on the sea coasts only, although there is
lime in other clays.
Geikie describes Loss a ‘ somewhat calcareous and
sandy clay . . . accumulated by the drifting action
ol the wind: * = « Very often contains concretions.” t
“The Loss is probably a subaerial deposit formed by
long-continued drifting of fine dust by the wind.”
This description does not adapt itself to our layer in
which the concretions are found.
Lyell§ writes: “In Germany the accumulation of Loss
has taken place on an enormous scale . . . . although
for the most part unstratified, it betrays in some places marks
of stratification, especially where it contains calcareous con-
cretions.||
This description fits our deposit and in contra-distinction
to Geikie ; Lyell describes it as “ fluviatile ” and looks upon
it as a river deposit, not as wind blown.
THE SHELLS found in the Guernsey Concretions and
named are :—
1. Helix aspersa ... ... ... (land species)
Pye athe ATC Abes FCs sake ee 4
Ss aitepida, in eee a
4. Pupa umbilicata . Sate ms
Oo. 5, .muscorum (marginate) 5
6. Succinea elegans... ... ... (marsh species)
These shells have been found in the corresponding
English deposit. They are also present in the Continental
deposits. Lyell figures 1 and 5, Prestwich gives a list of
13, of which the above 6 form a part, as being found in the
same deposit.
If we may call these shells fossils then they are the first
fossils found in the island.
The deposits have been visited by Mr. E. D. Marquand,
Mr. Sinel and myself, four times this summer, and the naming
of the shells was undertaken by Mr. Marquand.
* Class book of Geology, Archibald Geikie, L.L.D., F.R.S., fol. 202.
t Also fol. 472. + Also Prehistoric Europe, fol, 144.
§ Student’s Elements of Geology, 1878. Sir Charles Lyell, fol. 413.
|| The italics are mine.—A. C. J See Lyell’s ‘‘Student’s Elements,” fol. 134,
eel NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS. 381
There is rather an important point to be noticed.
On the Continent the Loss les in horizontal beds and
conforms regularly to the river valley in which it occurs.
This deposit is abutting the inclined cliff, but the layers
of concretions are horizontal. Here they are broken off by
the erosion of the sea and probably extended seawards for
some distance. The deposit must therefore be an old one
and little else but the last remnant of a larger deposit.
I do not look upon this deposit as identical with the
glacial clay of the upper part of the island, but I admit that
we shall have to work out the values of the clays, for as yet
there is considerable difficulty in correlating them. My work
of this year leads me to classify the clays as of four different
periods, and those with different climates.
Antiquities.
Hougue Noirmont on the Miellette side has proved to be
a very interesting position and has been the site of several
finds of importance.
There have been found stone graves.* The De Hus
Dolmen is practically on the same Hougue. The site is also
one on which a considerable area of the raised beach of the
50 feet elevation, which with the Capelles and the other
Noirmont (near Les Maingys), mark an ancient sea level.
The Dolmen and stone graves were at the same elevation,
and now we have, also practically at the same level, a new
find.
The Hougue is owned by our valued member, Mr.
J. 8. Hocart, and a quarry opening out into Miellette Bay is
worked by another of our active workers, Mr. Le Tissier.
It may be that the interest the Society holds in this site
results from the action of these gentlemen in losing no chance
of investigation.
In June a blast was made in the quarry and an un-
suspected hearth or Potter's Kiln was exposed. The above-
named gentlemen at once communicated the fact and working
parties were organised.
The following is a description of the find, and ac-
companying it is a series of drawings giving all necessary
details.
Position: The hearth or Isiln is situate on the east
side of the entrance to the quarry. It consists primarily of a
trench which originally had been open at the top, but was
found to be covered with the earth and rubble which had
accumulated by weathering since its abandonment, so that it
was 3 to 4 feet below the existing level of the soil.
382 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS.
ForMATION : After the trench had been cut it was lined
with stones of unequal sizes arranged as loose walls but well
aligned. These were plastered with a thick coating of
plastic clay, evidently (judging from the samples examined)
taken from the seashore.
The lining of clay so formed was some two inches thick,
but was added to and thickened to 4 inches by the insertion,
all around the sides and bottom, of clay bricks previously
moulded and baked. These bricks had evidently been formed
by pressing plastic clay into spaces made by arranging
suitable flat stones to form moulds. The shapes were
repeated and there were not many.
The bricks, in some cases, were joined together by a
small dowel which fitted into the sockets in the ends of the
bricks made by pressing the finger into the soft clay.
That these bricks were baked before use is evident
from the fact that they were brick-red all through, whereas
the clay surrounding them was red and yellow, depending on
its position as regards the kiln. The coating of clay was
smoothed and made fairly true and had been baked into brick
by use.
It was also evident that the kiln had been refaced, for
a thin skin of brick broke away from the older surface. The
heat had penetrated to a considerable depth, for only the back
of the clay bedding was yellow in colour.
The floor was also clay-lined and on the bottom rested
a small quantity of ashes and several stones—blackened by
use—-as heating stones. Behind the large stones were found
broken bricks and refuse stones and clay, the whole filling the
trench and supporting the sides of the Kiln, and offering
further evidence of the separate origin of the bricks. One
piece of worked flint was found by our President and a few
pieces of pottery, apparently of Neolithic age. It is evident
that before being abandoned the Kiln had been emptied.
This form of Kiln was new to Guernsey, but, strange to
say, not long after Mr. 8. Carey Curtis, while looking over
a refuse heap under the soil at Fort Grey, found some bricks
of almost identical shape. Specimen bricks from both
localities are in the Museum.
The position at Fort Grey was visited by the Society on
the occasion of their excursion to Pleinmont, and other
specimens were collected, consisting of hand-bricks, pieces of
pottery and pieces of the long shaped bricks. Whether these
belong to the Neolithic period or not is not yet decided. On
comparing this one with other finds we are met with the fact.
1ot2. || NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESULTS. 383
that the other such places and bricks are evidently belonging
to a late culture.
For instance, there had been found at Quiberon and
described by Mr. Le Rouzic, who is known personally to
most of us, a very elaborate furnace with a regular grate built
in with fire- bars, supported on corbels, which in turn were
kept in place by ‘flat bead stones imbedded in the clay. The
furnace was also provided with flues and was different in the
way it was built up ; indeed there seems to have been only a
family likeness between this one and ours, the latter being
much more crude.
A series of hills or mounds exist near the estuary of the
River Colne in Essex. These hills are covered by such a
quantity of bricks, whole and broken, and clay which has been
burnt, that the earth for some feet in depth is red and the hills
go under the name of “ Red Hills ” in consequence.
In these hills have been found great numbers of broken
long bricks like ours but longer, which are thought to be
fire-bars. There are, however, no furnaces there, although
these hills seem to be the places where the river and marsh
clays were collected and burnt. There are hand-bricks also
exactly of the same form as we find here at Richmond, Fort
Grey, and in this new position. Here again the forms appear
to be more Zeveloped than ours.
I shall not discuss the probable age of our find, but will
simply say that if we had no other guide but the horizon on
which we find it we shonld have called it late Neolithic.
Those in other parts of Europe are considered to be late Celtic.
Only two weeks ago Mr. Hocart telephoned to me that he
and Mr. Le Tissier had discovered, at Sandy Hook, what
appeared to him to be stones of a dolmen. I at once
arranged with Mr. Curtis and those of our members I
happened to see to go out and view the stones. The first
visit was paid by Mr. Curtis and myself, and on that occasion
we decided that the find was promising enough to work.
On the second occasion six members came out and we dug
out a complete circle of stones. ‘The stones were small—were
standing on a natural clay deposit which is common to the
whole of the field and were without any cap stones.
I may say that the property belongsto Mr. Joseph Naftel,
and he very kindly granted the Society permission to excavate.
The position is called Sandy Hook and a little time ago it con-
sisted of large dunes of blown sand, now removed. The sand
has mostly been carted off for use in greenhouses and a clay
floor beneath the sand has been exposed. This is the clay
384 NOTES ON GEOLOGICAL RESUUTS.
floor on which the stones have been placed and on which the
men of the day walked. We have been fortunate enough to
find flint chips and cores in sufficient numbers to establish the
places to be one used by the prehistoric men.
As regards the circle we have excavated—there is no
possible doubt that it is the work of man, but, as far as we
have gone, it is a circle only, not a dolmen. There is an
alignment of stone starting from the circle which we have not
yet uncovered ; but these we know to be loose stones of the
same sizes as those of the circle. Beyond the cirele and
above the alignment is a large stone looking like an outcrop of
rock, for which indeed we at first took it.
On our third visit, we were but three workers, hence
could not do much ; but we determined the large stone to be a
large, loose and weathered stone, and that it rested on a flat
surface of stone which we had not time to clear. The flat
stone is large enough to be a capstone and there is loose clay
below it. These stones have other smaller ones in such
positions as point to their being trigs or supports.
The whole must be uncovered as soon as possible. Flint
chips and pebbles have been found in the clay to the very
bottom of our excavation.
The stones have been in position so long that the line of
the clay filling is visible by decompositon of the stones.*
* For fuller details see special report in this number.
SOME HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL
NOTES ON THE PRIORY AT LIHOU.
BY S. CAREY CURTIS.
0
The Priory was dedicated to Notre Dame de la Roche
and was probably in pastoral care of the district comprised in
the Fief Lihou extending along the coast called Perelle, from
L’Erée to Rocquaine Castle, where the district of St. Brioc
begins. It was served by a Prior, appointed by the Prior of
St. Michel du Valle, a dependency of the greater Abbey of
St. Michel au péril de la Mer in the Bay of Avranches. It
was regarded by the Breton fishermen and sailors employed in
the coasting trade with great reverence, and they were wont
to lower their topmasts when passing, and it was a favourite
resort of pilgrims (Guernsey Folk Lore, p. 166).
Note.—Sir Edgar McCulloch derives Perelle not from
peril but from pierre, and pierre and roche are synonymous in
the Guernsey dialect (Folk Lore p. 341).
Histrory.—Very little is known historically of the
Priory. The early records are few and the date of its
foundation is unknown to us with any certainty. “The
Dedicace des Eiglises” gives 1114 as the date of the consecra-
tion, but in view of the unreliability of the whole of the
Dedicace, not much importance can be attached to this date.
It is not, however, impossible, as I shall show later in dealing
with the Architecture of the Priory.
In a Bull of Adrian IV., dated 1155, the Priory (in the
Bull called Lishou) is scheduled amongst the Guernsey
possessions of the Abbey of Mont St. Michel. It was
dignified together with the churches of St. Saviour, St.
Marie de Castro, St. Peter de Bosco, and St. Michel de
Vallo, with the term “ecclesiam” not “capellam” which
would show that it was of some importance at that date.
Note.—Incidentally, I understand from the Rev. Walter
Brock that the Parish of St. Peter-in-the-Wood includes the
Priory of Lihou, and that on the induction of a new Rector,
an extra fee has to be paid for the plural benefice.
In 1443 the reversion of Lihou was granted (inter alia)
to the Provost of Eton College. A search among the Eton
College Archives might give some interesting information.
386 THE PRIORY AT LIHOU.
There are many entries of the names of Priors and other
matters in the rolls of the Vale Church, but none of note
until 1560, when Sire Thomas De Baugy became Prior. He
was probably the last, as in 1568 Guernsey was severed from
the see of Coutances and transferred to that of Winchester,
and the raison d’étre of Lihou then came to an end, De Baugy
about this time becoming, first, rector of the Vale, and later
of St. Sampson’s in addition.
The above represents the whole of the records I have
been able to find of the pre-Reformation history of the Priory.
Probably at the transfer of the Guernsey benefices from
Coutances to Winchester, the veneration in which the Priory
was held diminished, and it began to fall into disrepair.
Heylin in his book “Journeys to France and the Channel
Islands,” published in 1656, records that it was then in ruins
and had been for a long time, but the steeple, which then
served as a “sea-marke,” was still standing. The tradition is
well known that a Governor of (Guernsey during the
Napoleonic wars ordered the demolition of the Priory in order
to prevent its being used by the enemy* ; but Heylin’s account
effectually disposes of this legend. The steeple, in all pro-
bability, fell down in lapse of time, and the story of the
Priory having been blown up is certainly mythical and
probably invented to account for its ruined condition.
In 1838 Mr. F. C. Lukis visited it and made certain
sketches and plans which are virtually of what may be seen
at the present time. He left two sketches, one from the N.E.
and the other looking at the N. wall from the 8., showing
the walls which then existed. Examination shows that
fortunately no destruction has apparently taken place in the
walls since that date. Mr. Lukis left in his Collectanea, now
in the Lukis Museum, a long account of his researches on the
site, but the results are very meagre and of not much im-
portance. He found a few pieces of glass and pottery, some
coins (which have now all disappeared), one or two pieces of
carving, of which similar pieces can be seen built into the
walls of the farm-house, and a piece of green Egyptian
porphyry, which he found in the Sanctuary under the pave-
ment and to which he attached great importance. It seems
to me, however, that it came into that position by accident as
rubbish to fill up under the flooring. Mr. Lukis left no
record of discoveries of larger importance, or information of
any kind, which would help a subsequent explorer to get any
idea of the Priory in its original condition.
* Tupper’s History of Guernsey mentions 1793 as the year in which the Priory
was demolished, but a search among the military records of that time at the
Headquarter Office does not confirm that statement.
1912. | MAE PRIORY AT LIHOU. 387
ARCHITECTURE.—The Priory, as far as can be gathered
from the existing scanty remains, consisted of a nave, 41ft. 6in.
long by 29ft. wide ; a choir or sanctuary, 41ft. long by 17ft.,
on the north-eastern corner of the nave, and a tower about
12ft. square on the north side of the nave.
Certain straight joints in the masonry show that the
Priory was without much doubt built in three parts, and the
evidence points to the nave having been first built, then the
sanctuary was added, and the tower was added later, the
then existing north wall being utilized for one of its
walls.
We have still existing the greater part of the north wall
of the nave, the lower part of the tower complete, the lower
parts of the sanctuary, and the east wall of the nave. The
north wall of the nave still shows the springing of the vaulting
and the construction and nature of the roof, giving us data by
which we can arrive at the height of the roof of the nave.
On the south side of the sanctuary are the remains of a
building the use of which I have not been able to determine
with any degree of certainty. It extends the whole length of
the sanctuary with an internal width of only 6 feet. The
dimensions indicate that it was not, as might be expected, a
side chapel as the masonry at the 8.1. angle of the choir
shows that it was built at a later date than the walls of the
sanctuary. It might have been a platform where the pilgrims
collected before entering the Priory. The ground near is
very broken, and a procession moving across it would not have
been able to proceed in an orderly manner. Or it might have
been a robing vestry for any ecclesiastics who came with the
bands of pilgrims.
On the south side of the nave is a mass of masonry, in
which I have made some few excavations and which appear
to establish the fact that it is the south wall collapsed out-
wards. I have hopes that further investigations will reveal
the presence of windows and, possibly, some of the stained
elass remaining stillin them. On the site Mr. Lukis discovered
a small piece of blue glass, which is now in the Lukis
Museum.
Of the western wall nothing now remains except the return
end to the north wall. Mr. Lukis shows in his plan of 1838 a
doorway about 10 feet from the angle, but of this no trace
now remains.
The pavement still remains zn situ in one place. It was
formed of alternate quarries of malachite green and buff, 64
inches square, all over the nave and sanctuary. There used
D
388 THE PRIORY AT LIHOU.
to be within recent years a few in the sanctuary near the east
end, but they have now all disappeared. The sanctuary floor
was about 2 feet above the level of the nave floor.
The worked stones, which are found on the site and also
built into the farm buildings (for which the ruins undoubtedly
formed a quarry ), show that the design of the building of which
they formed part must have been far more ornate than any other
ecclesiastical building, still existing, of the same date in the
Channel Islands. They are of Caen stone and consist of
voussoirs of arches, shafts, caps and bases of columns, shiny
courses, many with the familiar chevron decorations, and
ashlar both moulded and also plain work.
The remains of the arch stones give us some information
as to the arches of which they were an integral part. The
setting out from their centres gives us, in four taken at
random, arches of the following radius: 1ft. 3in., 3ft. Qin.,
2ft. 3in., and 2ft. 6in.; they were all of one pattern, the
usual Norman moulding with a bird’s beak or dog’s tooth stop
in the centre of each stone. There are no stones as far as I
have discovered, of a large arch, and I am led to think from
the larger number of the stones of smaller arches, that part
of the wall of the Priory was arvaded. The centres show
they were mostly of too small radius to belong to a doorway,
and there are quite sufficient of fairly large radius for any
openings which could be required.
At the N.E. and §8.E. angles of the sanctuary were two
Caen stone shafts with caps and bases. Now these at the
time when the sanctuary was built were used to support the
ends of the ribs of a groined roof. Hence I arrive at the
deduction that the sanctuary roof was groined. The roof
would naturally have been vaulted and the step to groiming
would have been easy. In this case there must have been
similar shafts in other parts of the sanctuary, but they have
quite disappeared.
The carvings, mouldings and general details of the worked
stones are those of the Transition period, between what is
known in England as Norman and early Iinglish, and the date
in which this was prevalent corresponds to the late 12th and
early 13th century.
There are, so far as I have been able to discover, no
traces of worked stone in the nave. The attention of the
builders was apparently concentrated on the beautifying of
the sanctuary, and the nave remained always, as we see in the
older Parish Churches of Guernsey, a kennel-like building
without any architectural refinements.
1912. | THE PRIORY AT LIHOU. 389
Recapitulating then the deductions at which I have
arrived as regards the building of the Priory :
(1) About 1100-1150 the nave was built.
(2) About 1200-1250 the sanctuary was added.
(3) Later, say in the 14th century, the tower was
built.
Mr. Lukis gives a plan of a building at the west end of
the Priory which does not appear to have had any distinctive
name or use. No record is left of there having been a
monastery on the island, as a Prior only is mentioned ; but any
pilgrims who came to do reverence to Our Lady of Lihou
would necessarily have to reduce their pilgrimage to the
shortest possible time or depend on some kind of shelter, as
the tides in those days were no more thoughtful than
they are nowadays, and I conclude this was some sort of
hostel, where the pilgrims might be received during their stay.
According to Mr. Lukis it was an L-shaped building. The
foot of this, divided into two chambers, probably those of the
Prior, remains, and the longer limb of the L consisted of a
refectory, 36ft. long by 19ft. wide inside, with a circular
building at the end of the refectory farthest away from the
Priory. This was perhaps the kitchen, and colour is lent to
this surmise by the discovery by him in a drain close by of
the usual refuse from some fish bones, pottery, pieces of
iron, &c., &c.
To the N.W. of the Priory is the lower part of another
circular building with curious niches close to the ground.
Tradition gives this as the Colombier or pigeon house, but I
have not come across any records which would establish the
fact.
A field close to this is called “ Le Cimetiére,” and to the
east of it is an enclosure called “ Le Jardin.” These names
possibly referred to the use they were put to in monastic times.
N.B.—These notes represent the result of occasional
visits to the island during the last fifteen years, particularly
during the past winter. They by no means exhaust the
subject, and may be regarded as arriving only at the broad
facts of the measurements and character of the Priory of
Lihou, and not as an attempt to enter into details. There is
still plenty of work for an interested explorer and work, which
will well pay research in the investigation of the ruins of one
of our most interesting medieval ecclesiastical relics, which,
390 THE PRIORY AT EIHOU.
owing probably to its inaccessibility, has up to the present
received scant attention.
The theories I put forward in this paper are my own as
regards the general architecture. No others have, as far as I
can find, dealt with this subject, and I am quite open to
criticism on any points, and if the discussion thereby entailed
leads to a greater interest being taken in the Priory, a useful
object will have been gained.
August 16, 1912.
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NOTES ON THE RAINFALL OF THE BAILIWICK IN
1912, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO SARK
AND ALDERNEY.
BY BASIL T. ROWSWELL.
0
THE very wet year, 1910, has been quickly followed by
another twelvemonth of abnormal rainfall, a few facts in
connection with which it is my imtention to touch upon briefly
in the following notes. The two years (1910 and 1912) at
Guernsey, as shown by the records at Les Blanches, had to
all intents and purposes a similar rainfall. At Sark there
was a perceptible difference, the figures proving 1912 to have
been the drier of the two years in that island by rather more
than one inch. Alderney cannot enter into the comparison
because of an unfortunate break in the record which occurred
during October, 1910, but this notwithstanding the eleven
months’ figures show that Alderney by no means escaped the
1910 deluge.
As, speaking in a general way, the same weather obtains
in all the islands of the Bailiwick—more, in the whole of the
Channel group—a few words on the building up of the 454
inches of rain constituting the 1910 and 1912 total at Les
Blanches and its relation to the normal of 34 inches may not
be out of place in these introductory remarks because of its
applying with equal force, if dealing with a smaller rainfall
total, to Sark and Alderney. As regards the three islands,
Guernsey, Sark and Alderney, the figures appear to point
conclusively to Sark being the driest and Guernsey the wettest
place, but bearing this in mind and the natural effect of acci-
dental differences, such for instance as are sometimes occasioned
by local thunderstorm rains or heavy partial showers, a dry
month or a wet year in one island is equally so in the other two.
Rainfall of 19i0 and 1912 Compared.
The year 1912, similarly to 1910, enjoyed a surplus of
rainfall from beginning to end. At the start 1910 proved
very decidedly the wetter of the two, and held the position
until the advent of March when 1912 temporarily took the
lead owing to March proving abnormally wet in this year.
On March 31st, however, the two years were running each
other very closely, 1912 having topped 1910 by 0:23 in.
only. The figures are: 1912, 12°08in.; 1910, 11°85in.;
normal, 7°62 in,
E
392 BAILIWICK RAINFALL.
During the next three months 1910 again led the way—by as
much as 2°07 in. at the end of May, but by 0°08 in. only at the
end of June when the figures were: 1910, 17°52in.; 1912,
17°44in.; normal, 14:°27in. The year 1912 now forged ahead ~
as the result of two very wet months—July and August—-
months which in 1910 only secured the average amount.
September, too, in 1910, considerably checked the growth of
that year’s figures through its being a remarkably dry month,
and it was at this period that the greatest difference in the
totals for the two years occurred, 1912 being then the wetter
(January to September) by no less than 9:llin. The actual
figures are: 1910, 22°68.1n. ; 1912, 31-791n.5 normal, 22-010,
From the figures it will be seen that whereas at the end of the
third quarter the 1910 rainfall was in excess by 0°60 in. only,
that of 1912 showed a surplus of 9°7lin. But 1912’s big
effort at rain-making was practically at an end while ss. of
1910 was but just beginning.
Each year had an unusually dry month—in 1912 it was
April, in 1910 September. And in the same way the months
of excessive rainfall—the months responsible for the year’s
mountainous grand total—were different in each year. In
1912 these unenviable periods were in particular March and
August, about which more will be said later ; in 1910 October
and November were, par excellence, the wet months. The
persistence of cyclonic activity was indeed so marked in the
Autumn of 1910 and the daily rainfalls so copious, that
November, with 11:13 in., stands out as the wettest month at
Les Blanches of the 19 years 1894-1912, and October, with
7°59 in., as the fourth wettest month of the same period. As
together these two months totalled no less than 18°72 in. of
rain, against 9°52 in. in the corresponding months of 1912, the
fickle downpours had the effect of again practically equalising
the aggregates which, at the end of November, were: 1910,
41°40in. ; 1912, 41°31in., 1910 thus having the lead at this
point by a paltry 0°09in. In December, however, it lost this
small gain, for 1912 ended with the grand total of 45°55 in.,
against 45°541n. the equally grand total of 1910. The year
1912 at Les Blanches was therefore wetter than 1910 by
0'Olin.! And both years had an excess over the normal of,
roughly speaking, 11°50 in.
General Remarks on the Weather of 1912.
January Ist, 1912, was a beautifully bright and mild day
over the Bailiwick of Guernsey—it was a perfect New Year’s
day, and a lovely moonlight night followed. The year in no
way opened as it was going to continue, for rain fell smartly
1912.] BAILIWICK RAINFALL. 393
in all the islands on the 4th, Alderney reporting over half-an-
inch (0°51 in.), and the weather generally became unsettled.
January’s contribution to the year’s weather was a help in the
direction of “warm and wet” for the month had three
important rainy intervals and was very mild until the last few
days when the only cold snap of the 1911-12 winter occurred.
Alderney felt the wintry nip, for it was reported that “hard
frost held the Blayes and bound the Marais cattle troughs ”
‘on the 29th.
The cold snap was most severe in the first week of
February, but came to a sudden end on the Sth, after which
extremely mild conditions with rainy weather prevailed to the
end of the month. One very wet week for the time of year
was experienced—the 18th-24th—when a total of 1°61in. of
rain fell at Guernsey (Les Blanches), 1:44in. at Sark, and
1°52 in. at Alderney.
March was another month of unusually high temperature
and of much rainfall. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) it proved
to be the wettest March of the 19 years (1894-1912) and in
the two smaller islands the total is a big figure (see Table).
During some rough cyclonic weather in the first week big
differences of rainfall were experienced. [or the 5th and 6th
the measurements were as follows :—
GUERNSEY SARK ALDERNEY
, (Les Blanches). (Vallée du Creux). (Le Huret).
Mareh oth (luesday)... O°60in. ...... Qe SSM: aicier ac O-ll in.
ae oun ( Wednesday) O°20in. ...... OP EO cinerea 0:03 in.
Potale io. <i. 3<. 0°80 in. O°57 in. 0°14 in.
Hail, thunder and lightning was a frequent accompani-
ment of the stormy spells. For instance violent thunder and
lightning occurred at Guernsey on the evening of the 5th, and
Alderney reported “squalls, hail, thunder, lightning” for the
19th, and “increasing gale, thunder in squalls,” for the 21st.
Jersey, by the way, reported a thunderstorm in being to the
Meteorological Office at 7 a.m. on the 20th.
An unusually wet week was that of Sunday to Saturday,
March 17th to 23rd, when no less than 2°78 in. of rain fell at
Guernsey (Les Blanches), 2°3lin. at Sark, and 2°13in. at
Alderney. Much better weather, however, was at hand for,
in striking contrast to the above, the measurements for the
following week (March 24th to 30th) were: Guernsey,
0-08in. ; Sark, 0°06 in.; and Alderney, 0-06 in.
April proved a delightful month—warm and very dry.
It was, everywhere, the driest month of the year, and more
than that. At Sark it was the driest month experienced since
394 BAILIWICK RAINFALL.
rainfall observations were commenced by Capt. Henry in
January, 1906, and, with September, 1910, which had a -
similar rainfall, it was also the driest month recorded by Mr.
Picot, at Alderney. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) it proved
to be the driest April of the last 19 years. At Sark no rain
at all fell after the 9th, and at Alderney and Guernsey (Les
Blanches) after the 10th. As the dry interval included more
than 14 consecutive days a drought in the technical sense of
the word was experienced. A tabulated statement of the
year’s droughts, &c., is given at the end of this paper.
The dry weather continued all through May, but was
much less pronounced than in April, occasional showers falling
in all the islands sufficiently heavy to refresh the surface of
the ground. A report from Sark in the second week ran :
“A little rain fell on Tuesday (the 7th) but only enough to
moisten the surface of the ground. Crops are already
suffering from the long drought.” Guernsey was blessed with
a thunderstorm during the early night of the 11th which gave
a very welcome rainfall of 0°26in. at Les Blanches. Both
Sark and Alderney managed to escape the shower! May was
a very warm month, especially in the first half. As a whole
it proved to be the warmest month of the name at Guernsey
(Les Blanches) of the 19 years 1894-1912.
And now began the wretchedly cold and very wet summer
of 1912—a summer that will be as memorable for its remark-
able unseasonableness as that of 1911 was for the glorious
sunshine and warmth enjoyed. The change set in immediately
with the advent of June in the first week of which the whole
of the Channel Islands were deluged with rain from passing
Atlantic depressions. The rainfall on some of these days was
so very variable at the several stations it has been thought
worth while to give a table of the daily measurements, includ-
ing that registered at St. Aubin’s, Jersey, and at Portland
Bill, near Weymouth, just across the Channel :—
PORTLAND. ALDERNEY. GUERNSEY, SARK. JERSEY.
in. In. in. 1n. In:
Jie ace seeker ee 0°10 ow O14 oe. O43) ORS ay ee
Bad | eaves ote's, ohare tetas > 0°02. ve. O13 ... 4°05 t. 20 oe
Wet RTD then cleke, crate cle 0°30 2... O14 2... O16. ... np OZ eee
1a yudiersaseeeedele 0-24 ... 032 ... 032 ... O25 ... O41
dias Moree mo. OBL). 00796 Cs, oe
er eee 0°01 66. O55 sn O24 su OE Le
etm REE ekhieel O74... 0°06 J. 0°05) 1 9004 ee
Lotals:. ...... 1°41 9... 1°85) wie B04) ce PROT
1912. ] BAILIWICK RAINFALL. 395
Notice the very small rainfall at Alderney and Portland
Bill on the Ist and 2nd and the big measurement at Sark and
Jersey on the Ist. The Alderney total for the week is in
keeping with that at Portland Bill, while Jersey, on the south
side of the Channel, experienced the heaviest fall of all,
followed by Sark as a very good second. The effect of this
peculiarity in the rainfall was to alter the normal relative
positions of the islands as regards the June aggregate, Sark,
usually the driest place, registering the biggest total. As a
matter of fact Capt. Henry’s total for Sark exceeded the
Guernsey (Les Blanches) amount by 0°18in., and that at
Alderney by no less than 1 73 in.
June was unsettled all through, a cyclonic westerly type
of pressure distribution prevailing from beginning to end, but
onward from the 7th rainfall though frequent was not by any
means heavy.
July was the warmest month of 1912, but very cold at
that. As asummer month nothing of good can be said of 1t—
more days were cold than warm, no seasonable hot interval
was experienced, the period was unsettled all through and
became very wet at the close. On the evening of Saturday,
the 13th, the islands were visited by a thunderstorm which
deposited 0°55 in. of rain at Guernsey (Les Blanches), 0°63 in.
at Sark, and 0°62in. at Alderney. On Friday, the 26th, a
day of little wind, and that little variable in direction—in
fact with everything pointing to the presence of a shallow
depression in our neighbourhood if not actually over us—one
of those big differences of rainfall occurred in the islands
which is worth putting on record. The measurements on the
morning of the 27th were as follows :—
GUERNSEY. SARK. ALDERNEY. JERSEY.
OBSAN. aie 0 Qe sale oe 795, 11. wise 1°46 in.
In connection with the downpour at Jersey (St. Aubin’s) a
thunderstorm is reported to have occurred, and thunder was
heard at Guernsey during the evening.
The next day (Saturday, the 27th) a cloud burst of
exceptional violence deluged Guernsey and to a lesser extent
Sark. At Guernsey, in something like 15 minutes, beginning
at 7 p.m., from three-quarters of a inch to one inch of rain
fell at Les Blanches. Many shops in St. Peter-Port were
flooded, and at the Vauxlaurens walls were washed away by
the rush of water. This day’s measurements, as given below,
were again very different everywhere—in fact the order of the
previous day was exactly reversed.
GUERNSEY. SARK. ALDERNEY. JERSEY.
102 tm. 22. ODa ie, fuss O 2th ime ssa. OL S.10
396 BAILIWICK RAINFALL.
August was the wettest month of the year at all the
stations. Unsummerlike as July had proved itself August
turned out many times worse. For downright all round un-
seasonableness it was fortunately an August we are not likely
to see a repetition of ina hurry. At Sark, where rain fell on
25 days, it was, with a total of 6°57in. of rain, the third
wettest month of the 7 years 1906-1912. At Alderney,
contrary to the usual order, somewhat less rain fell than at
Sark, but the state of things may be gauged by the following :
“Special prayers for the cessation of rain were offered up in
the St. Anne’s places of worship on Sunday last.”—Evening Press,
August 19th.
Court of Alderney, Tuesday.—“ The Court, taking into con-
sideration the extraordinary bad weather which has hindered the
harvesting of 1912, and that the safe and rapid garnering of the
crops is of the greatest public utility, after having heard the
King’s Procureur, passed an Act granting permission to whomever
wished, to reap and harvest during the remaining Sabbaths of the
season, said permission to date from Sunday, August 25th, and
ordered the publication thereof in the ordinary places.” —Hvening
Press.
“A number of farmers availed themselves of the recent Act
of Court relating to Sunday harvesting, and worked hard at
reaping on Sunday last.”—Hvening Press, September 12th. .
At Guernsey (es Blanches) the month had 27 rain days and
its total of rainfall (7:43 in.) made it the wettest August
of the 19 years 1894-1912; it was also the coldest.
August 12th was the wettest day of the year both at
Sark and Alderney where 1°35in. and 1°30 in. respectively of
rain fell with a freshening east wind and a steadily dipping
barometer. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) 1:°19in. was
measured while at Jersey (St. Aubin’s) the amount reached
2-1 Sane!
Two cloud-bursts at Guernsey on the 19th, both
accompanied by thunder and lightning, gave a rainfall of
0:90in. at Les Blanches. At Sark the day’s rainfall only
totalled 0°23in., but at Alderney the measurement reached
0°55in. and Mr. Picot reported: “squally, cloudy, thunder-
storm, much rain.”
Sark had a big downpour all to itself on Sunday, the 25th.
It was another of those still days when, often, heaviest rain-
falls occur. A depression of some depth (Barometer 29°5 in. )
but little energy lay near us, and while Guernsey (Les
Blanches) measured 0°3lin. only of rain and Alderney
0°35 in., Capt. Henry’s gauge at Sark collected 0°92 in.
September brought no improvement as regards tempera-
ture—it was again miserably cold all through and the coldest
month of the name at Les Blanches of the 19 years period
1912. | BAILIWICK RAINFALL. 397
1894-1912. But in the matter of rainfall an anticyclonic
distribution of pressure gained the ascendancy in the early
days and a lengthy spell of dry weather was experienced.
At Sark only 0°20in. fell in the four weeks ending on the
28th, and at Alderney the figure was still smaller, viz., 0°12 in.
In both islands an “absolute ” drought was experienced (see
Table). A sudden change to cyclonic on the 28th resulted in
two very wet days as shown below :—
SARK. ALDERNEY. GUERNSEY. JERSEY.
Sore ee OSS ine os es. 1°241n. ....05 Ld5in. 2... 152m:
ee Os O86 We: soe... OsO3:ms tea ce: Ted Danis once tae 0°72 in.
On Tuesday, October Ist, Sark was visited by a deluge
of rain, with thunder and lightning, between 3 and 4 p.m.
That day’s rainfall, as measured by Capt. Henry, reached the
very big figure of 0°95in. Alderney, which escaped the
cloud-burst, had less than a quarter of an inch of rain
(0°'22in,). At Guernsey, where thunder and hghtning
occurred between 3.30 and 4 p.m. in connection with a smart
squall of wind and rain, the day’s total was 0°36 in.
A spell of absolutely dry weather, of 11 days’ duration at
Sark and Alderney, and of 10 at Guernsey, began on October
3rd, and then the weather broke up for good, cyclonic con-
ditions prevailing practically without break onward to the end
of the year.
One feature of the weather of 1912 is the large number
of big downpours bordering on or passing the inch in amount.
Several of these have already been referred to and one more
remains to be mentioned. This latter fell on October 20th
during the passage north of the islands of a well-marked
Atlantic low-pressure area. At Sark the fall reached 0°80 in.,
at Alderney 0°94 in., and at Guernsey (Les Blanches) 1:21 in.
A thunderstorm, severe at Sark, was felt in the three
islands during the early morning of October 21st. The
disturbance was of the winter or “cyclonic” type known as
a “line squall,” and occurred with a shift of wind from 8.W.
to N.W.
November was a typical month of the name, cold on the
whole because of much northerly wind, and continuously
unsettled in spite of a frequertly high barometer. In the last
week the weather became rough and very wet, 1°68 in. of rain
falling at Sark in the four days, 26th-29th, 2°20in. at
Alderney, and 2°17 in. at Guernsey (Les Blanches).
December’s weather was a continuation of that ex-
perienced in November with this difference, that the prevailing
direction of the wind being west a much milder temperature
398 BAILIWICK RAINFALL.
obtained and also a heavier rainfall. No cold at all visited
the Bailiwick (at Les Blanches the screened thermometer
dropped below 40 deg. on two days only), but rain was of
almost daily occurrence, and for several days about Christmas-
time fell in big amount. For the week ended the 28th the
totals were: Sark, 2°16in.; Alderney, 2.46in.; (ruernsey
(Les Blanches), 2°23 in.
As shown in the Table the year, at Sark, is the second
wettest of the seven years, 1906-1912; at Alderney it is the
wettest of the series, but owing to a gap in the series (1910—
a very wet twelvemonth) the comparison for that island includes
six years only. At Guernsey (Les Blanches) the year is the
wettest on record—that is since 1894.
In conclusion I have again to tender hearty thanks to
Capt. Henry, of Vallée du Creux, Sark, and to Mr. W. J.
Picot, of Le Huret, Alderney, for their valued co-operation
in recording the rainfall in their respective islands, and in
sending me weekly returns of the measurements for tabulation
and comparison with the Guernsey figures. Seven years have
now elapsed since the establishment of the stations in these
smaller islands of the Bailiwick, and already a good general
idea of their rainfall as compared with our own has been
obtained.
ABSOLUTE DRoUGHTS IN 1912.
An Absolute Drought, as defined in British Rainfall, is
“a period of more than 14 consecutive days, no one of which
is a rain day.”
SARK.
April 10 to May 2... = 23 days.
September 11 to 26 age =a LG wet
ALDERNEY.
April 11 to May 2... = 22 days.
September 12 to 27 =) baying,
; GUERNSEY (Les BuancuHeEs).
April 11 to May Qi... | we.) vie eal oe
PartTiaL DrRovuGcuHtTs IN 1912. -
A Partial Drought, as defined in British Rainfall, is
“a period of more than 28 consecutive days, the mean rainfall
of which does not exceed ‘01 in. per day.”
SARK.
Apr. 1 to May 6 ... = 36 days. Rainfall 0°34 in. on 6 days.
Aug. 30 to Sept.28. = 30 ,, js. ? yO? 2a eee
ALDERNEY.
Apr. 1 to May 5... = 35 days. Rainfall 0°26 in. on 6 days.
Aug. 29 to Sept. 28 = 31 ,, x 0°19 in. ,, Ga
1912. ] NOTES ON THE RAINFALL. 399
GUERNSEY (Les Biancues).
April 1 to May 3... = 383 days. Rainfall 0°32 in. on 9 days.
Long@est Rain SPELL IN 1912.
Inclusive dates giving the longest unbroken succession of
“rain days” for the year. |
SARK.
March 12 to 24... = 13 days. Total rainfall, 3°16 in.
ALDERNEY.
August 11 to 26 ... = 16 days. Total rainfall, 4°19 in.
GUERNSEY (Les Biancuss).
Feb. 26 to Mar. 24.. = 28 days. Total rainfall, 5.75 in.
SARK AND ALDERNEY RAINFALL, 1912.
Falls of
Monthly Rain . . . 0°50 in
morale. Days. Heaviest Daily Rainfall. a
above
Months. Bb b b
= SI 4
F a Sark Alderney. ess
oD) <q Mm | q nm | a
in. in. in. in.
January ........| 3°01 | 3°85 | 17 | 16 | 0°72 6th 0°62 16th 1) 4
February ...... 2°18 | 2°66 | 19 | 21 | 0°39 22nd 0°41 22nd == |=
NAECHO ks hes 4°88 | 4°20 | 25 | 25 | 0°50 20th 0°45 23rd 1) —
PEOTU . ie am os 0°16 | 0°20; 4] 4 | 0:07 9th 0°16 9th —|—
IAI Yee. oo eis'sp0.8 oe 0:73 | 0°62 | 10 | 10 | 0°23 30th 0°18 6th —|—
PODCH as aes dase 4-16 | 2°48 | 20 | 14.| 0°84 Ist 0°55 6th 4/; 2
OF ges ee ae 2°98 | 3:58 | 15°| 20 | 0°63 13th 0°95 26th 3. \) 12
PG CUBE oe ves 6°57 | 6°21 | 25 | 25 | 1°35 12th 1°30 12th Gr a3
September...... 1-96.) 2-29 | 6 |_ 6 1 0°89. 29th 1°24 29th Zines
Getober .....5.. 4:67 | 5°34 | 17 | 18 |.0°95 Ist 0:94 20th 3), 4
November ...... 2°09 3°42 | 17) 16. | 0°69: 29th 0°78 27th Tee
December ...... 3°18 |, 4°24 | 22 | 22 | 0°60 25th 0°64 27th 1| 3
The Year ....../37°87 |39-04 1197 [197 | 92 | 29
Totals and Heaviest Rainfall for the Seven Years, 1906-1912.
|
POGGM ike Ser. 26:07 | 28°63 |161 |168 /1-°16 June 28th 0°85 Nov. 8th} 10 | 15
TOOT ik ies ss 26°15 | 28°84 1178 |188 |1:11 Nov. 25th 1:15 Oct. Ist) 6| 7
1908............| 18°51 | 24:02 |155 |150 |0°62 Feb. 16th 1:04 Apl. 24th} 1] 6
NOOO eo asco 26°13 | 32°99 146 |157 |1°38 June 3rd 1°55 Nov. 15th) 14 | 15
TOMORE erie Se « 39:04| ? (203 | ? {1°84 Oct. 13th ? ee
UN a re 26°71 | 29:12 [152 |158 |1°40 Oct. 27th 1:21 Nov. 11th! 10 | 14
1919 st ees 37°87 | 89-04 |197 |197 |1:35 Aug. 12th 1:30 Aug. 12th) 22 | 22
Averages ...... | 28°64 | 30°44 {170 |169 | 11 ' 13
Norr.—The Sark averages are based on seven years’ observations, those
for Alderney on six years.
F
“LA1SI.1 LY NAN10d0 40 NVid IWHSNED
AN ACCOUNT OF THE DISCOVERY AND
EXAMINATION OF A CIST OR DOLMEN OF A
TYPE NOVEL TO GUERNSEY IN OCTOBER AND
NOVEMBER, 1912.
BY 8S. CAREY CURTIS,
Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects.
_——_~«£
THE attention of the Guernsey Society of Natural Science
and Local Research was drawn in October, 1912, to the
peculiar position of some stones, of which the points projected
above the soil, giving them the appearance of having been
set there purposely, in a field known locally as “Les
Fouaillages,”* situated close to the hamlet of L’Islet, in
St. Sampson’s Parish. This field slopes gently from N.E.
to S.W., and at this S.W. edge lies what was originally the
sea beach prior to the reclamation of the Braye du Valle by
Sir John Doyle in 1812, the margin of which now forms the
road known as “Sandy Hook.” This is clearly seen on
comparing the map published by the War Department in
1787, in which the Braye du Valle is shown as an arm of the
sea, ‘with the modern Ordnance Map of the same scale of
6 inches to the mile (y>4¢0) made in 1900. The surface of
the field was, like the adjoining fields, covered originally with
blown sand, but being to leeward of them, the prevailing
wind, S.W., brought more sand on to it than on to its
neighbours, and hence instead of being brought into cultivation
like them, was used chiefly as a sand pit for building operations
in the neighbourhood. Local tradition says the field was
covered at one time to a depth of 30 feet with sand. The
result of this removal of the sand was that mounds of various
* Gu. Fr. Fouaille = mod. Fr. fougére = Engl. Bracken, indicating a fern--brake
at one time stood on the spot.
402 DISCOVERY OF A CIST.
sizes stood scattered over the field, and it was under one of
these mounds, at the N.E. or higher end of the field, the
furthest removed from the road, and hence the last portion to
be attacked, that the discoveries were made. Under the
sand, and exposed in places, was a layer of peaty mould, and
dotted here and there were boulders of all sizes and shapes of
a greyish syenite, and underneath the whole was a_ bed of
rounded sea-worn pebbles, apparently an old sea beach. The
surface of the sand heap was rough and irregular as might
be expected following the operation of carting away. A few
points of boulders projecting above the surface, some patches
of wiry turf, a large clump of brambles, were all there was to
be seen. These boulders, where they were most seen, were
obviously in the form of a circle about 10 feet in diameter ex-
ternally. (See plan at A). They were of the same syenite as
the boulders dotted over the rest of the field. From one face of
this rough circle projected a line of points of boulders running
approximately 17° West of magnetic North. (Plan at B.)
In the rear of this line were dotted about in the heap of sand,
which here rose quickly off the bed of peaty mould, other points
of the same syenite as those already described.
The preliminary examination of the spot led the
observers to believe that the line of boulders referred to was
one line of stones, leading to what was almost certainly a rude
circle, and evidently placed there by the hand of man.
A few days later a volunteer working party of members
commenced work. A very short spell of digging was
sufficient to show that the circle was complete, and that it was
put in place by the hand of man. [Excavations carried down
to the base of the stones showed that they had been placed
on the beach, and what was more remarkable, that they had
in some cases been “trigged.”* The stratification of the soil
surrounding the stones was as follows: 1 ft. 3 inches (38 cm.)
of the same peaty mould with which the field was covered, and
next about 12 inches (30 cm.) of so-called clay (decomposed
oneiss), and lastly 6 inches (15 em.) of finer clay, almost mud,
on the top of the beach. This mud may have arisen from
the further decomposition of the gneiss forming the “clay ”
in conjunction with the hard pebbles.
After the circle had been cleared of the overlying soil,
which was carefully examined for signs of human activity,
but without success, search was made on the exterior and also
*To “trig” is an expression used by the Guernsey quarrymen to denote the
process of wedging a block of granite with smaller stones round the bottom to
prevent its rocking while being worked.
—
CRE
a8
INCH
CENTIM:
A.—THE POTTERY FOUND DURING EXCAVATION WITH SECTIONS.
B.—CENTRAL CIST FROM N. DURING EXCAVATION SHOWING “ TRIGGING.”’
: 3
; i
: : :
, P
é
é . 7 }
; ; ; ji :
3 = : : f
- ‘ f 5
. bs 7 R
¥ : / fs : 4
7 . — Sees Sree ooney seine = pas ele eeies,
1912.] DISCOVERY OF A CIST. 403
between the stones, with the result that four pieces of
pottery of a thick and pronounced dolmenic type were found
about 1 foot (30 cm.) above the pebble floor and at the spot
marked X in the circle A onthe plan. These pieces were later
found to fit together. See illustration A, No. 5.
The line of stones marked B on plan was also examined,
and was found to be continuous, and wherever a sinking was
made the base of each stone was found to be resting on the
beach already mentioned.
A few days later the party resumed operations. A
point of a larger boulder at C, which on being struck by a
spalling hammer gave indication of being a stone of consider-
able size, presented a promising spot on which to commence
work. A start was made by digging a trench from the point
C in aline parallel to B. After an hour’s digging it was ascer-
tained that the point showing at C was the top of a large
boulder, triangular in section, resting on two other boulders at
a lower level, and also that, as in the case of the circle A, it
had been “ trigged,” a line of small flat stones being set between
the two (see illustration B). Further digging showed the
upper stone and also the two lower ones extended in a
Westerly direction, and that the end in this direction was not
reached at 4 feet from the point C, and also that on digging
to the Southward, the width of the two lower stones was
found to be about 4 feet. At one place where the upper
stone was not “trigged,” it was found that the space under
was hollow and filled with blown sand.
The strata met with during this day were practically the
same as on the previous working day. There was on top
also 1 foot of blown sand and then a depth (on this occasion
not determined) of the peaty mould.
No objects of interest of pottery or flints were found
during this day’s work.
The prospects now being so promising, the Society decided
to proceed with the work of clearing away the mound which
covered the stones at its own expense, and men were en-
gaged.
Work had not long proceeded when it became an assured
fact that the workers had come across a discovery of great
interest. The upper stone, on being uncovered, was found to
be about 6ft. long, with the longer axis running East to West.
This was resting on two other stones of approximately the
same length, forming a chamber about 5ft. 8in. (1°70m.) Jong
and 2ft. 3in. (67° Sem.) to 2ft. 6in. (75cem.) wide. The depth
404 DISCOVERY OF A CIST
still remained to be ascertained. It was also discovered that
the Eastern end of this chamber was closed in by a well-fitting
stone, and in such a way as to preclude any possibility of its
having served as the entrance to the chamber. The entrance
was obviously to the West and was open, but on further
excavation a stone was discovered in front of it in a half fallen
position, having either fallen or been purposely thrown down.
This left no doubt as to its having served the purpose of
closing in the chamber. <A trench dug all round this structure
showed that the lower stones were about 3ft. high and that
they rested with little or no excavation on the beach in the same
way as all the stones discovered up to the present. The
chamber was found to be filled to within two or three inches
of the under side of the covering stone with a layer of blown
sand Ift. (30 em.) thick, resting on a bed of peaty mould,
formed by the decomposition of vegetable matter in the sand.
On the trench already mentioned being completed to the
entrance of the structure, an ante-chamber (D on plan) was
met with, about 6 feet (2 m.) square, formed of flat stone slabs
about 4-6 inches (10-15cm.) thick placed on edge in the soil with
dry walling at the N.W. and W. sides. This enclosure was,
as regards the walls, fairly perfect with an entrance at the 5.
No covering stones of any kind to this enclosure were to be
found, and. on being excavated later yielded nothing of
importance beyond a few sherds.
The clearing of the chamber of the central cist next
received attention, and in order to facilitate this, the capstone
was moved back some feet, marks being made on each stone
and photographs taken to ensure its being replaced as before.
The first layer met with was the blown sand already referred
to. This was found to be 12 inches (30cm.) in depth, reckon-
ing from the underside of the covering stone. At 7 inches
(L7*5cem.) down in this layer were a few pieces of carbonized
wood, almost certainly modern, and probably arising from the
burning of the furze which at one time or another covered
the mound. At 10 inches (25cm.) down a few pebbles, such
as would be found on the neighbouring fields and placed there
quite indiscriminately, with some limpet shells, were met with.
Under this layer, and separated by a very decided line, was a
stratum of the same peaty mould found elsewhere over the
surface of the field 1ft. 9in. (52° dem.) thick. Almost on the
surface of this layer, 1 inch (2°5cm.) down, were found some
flakes of flint, but these proved on examination to be of no
interest. Close under these were found some fragments of
medizxval pottery and the handle of a jug, and under these
oe oe Ree L
C.—CENTRAL CIST FROM S.W. SHOWING CLOSING STONE AND ANTECHAMBER,
NOT To SLALE.
LINE OF STONES
cist . Pe
SECTION FRoMm) WroE. UNEOF STONES.
SOUTHE RIN
LINE OF STONES.
CrST,
SECTION FRom N.toS.
1. Blown Sand. 2. Peaty Mould. 3. Clayey Loam. 4, Old Sea-beach.
D.—STRATIFICATION OF MOUND THROUGH CENTRAL CIST,
fa
h
ee
A
1912. ] DISCOVERY OF A CIST. 405
close to the entrance at about 6 inches (15 cm.) two pieces of
bone.*
At 8-10 inches (20-25 cm.) down, scattered about the
chamber, but chiefly near the entrance, were a few sherds of
the same dolmenic type met with elsewhere on the site,
and a portion of the rim of a vase of much finer pottery
of dark colour (illustration A, Nos. 2-4). Interspersed
throughout were some large stones which must have been
inside before the covering in of the west end of the
chamber by the deposit of blown sand. This layer of peaty
mould was followed by one of clayey loam, 3 inches (7*5cm. )
thick, resting on the beach.
The ground in front of the entrance of the chamber was
also examined. A few fragments of pottery were found at
the base of the half fallen stones in front. They continued
for some little distance into the chamber, and gradually
become fewer, only one piece being found towards the eastern
end. A small blue glass bead was found at this level, but it
is open to question whether it may not have fallen down from
a higher layer during the excavation, as small portions of
sand and soil were still adhering to crevices in the stones.
(Blue glass beads are however found in graves of Bronze Age
II. in the south of England, and one identical in shape and
size, found in the neolithic head at Le Croeq, St. Saviout’s, is
now in the Guille-Allés Museum). A few flint implements or
flakes were found in this layer.
Examination of the fragments of pottery showed that
they were from at least five different vases (see illustration A).
No traces of bone or ashes could be seen in the layer in which
these fragments were found, in spite of a careful watch being
kept for them, and it was quite evident that the contents of the
chamber had been rifled at some bygone time.
A few days later another examination was made of the
soil of the ante-chamber. A few flakes of flint and two small
fragments of a vase of a very coarse red pottery were all that
was found on digging down.
At the western end of the northern supporting stone,
where the stone was broken off, forming a slight recess, an
urn was found (see illustration E.) It was half imbedded in
the layer of clayey loam referred to above. It was in fairly
good preservation, one side being perfect ; it had two lugs,
*These pieces were submitted to Dr. A. Smith Woodward, of the Natural
History Museum, Kensington, who reported: ‘‘I think from their texture, there is
no doubt that the bones are human, but I am sorry to say that they are too
imperfect for exact determination.” Mr. Collenette has since by careful measure-
ments been able to match them in the skeleton and considers them to be portions
of the ulna and humerus. |
406 DISCOVERY OF A CIST.
one on each side, both pierced horizontally, for convenience of
being hung by a suspending string. Between the lugs on one
side is a small projection or “ mamelon,” such as is found in
urns discovered in the Guernsey dolmens ; the position where
the other ‘“‘mamelon” would be was where the side was
broken away. The urn at the time of discovery was full of
the same clayey loam in which it was imbedded, and on being
emptied, after being dried, nothing was found in it.
After the emptying of the chamber, the capstone was slid
back again, and comparisons with the photographs and the
marks on the stones showed it was again in its position as
discovered.
The clearing of the enclosure was now proceeded with.
The face B on plan had been partially cleared and it was now
completed, and a trench was carried on as the stones were met
with. Another circle was discovered to the S.E. of the
eastern face (see Ii on plan), formed of fewer and much larger
stones than the circle A, but of much the same size externally.
No objects of interest were found in this circle when dug
down into, and the same stratification observed on the other
parts of the site was met with, the stones of the circle again
being found to rest on the same beach, and this proved to be
the case in the whole of the excavation of the enclosure.
From the circle E the enclosure was found to project to
the West, almost at a right angle to the face B, and in the
angle formed by the circle EX and the continuation of the
enclosure (marked I’ on the plan) was a confused mass of
small stones. These when cleared away exposed a small cist,
G on plan, dft. 2in. long (1.35m.) x ft. 9in. to 1ft. (52:5em.
to 30cm.) wide x Ift. 6in. (45cm.) deep, formed of one large
and one small stone set up on edge on each side, and one stone
at each end also set on edge and fitting in between the side
stones, as in the central cist (see illustration F). A stone found
at the head or Kastern end of this cist had the appearance of
having formed part of the capstone. It is noticeable in this cist
that there are appearances of its having formed two cists, the
larger section (to the HKastward) 3ft. 2in (95cm.) long x Ift. ©
(30cm.) wide, being narrower than the section, 2ft. (60cm. )
long x lft. 9in. (52°5cm.) wide, to the Westward. In that
case the interments would have taken place in different
directions thus L and the Western interment would have been
of a small person. Possibly it was of a mother and child.
This cist, or cists, were surrounded by an enclosure of stones
nearly perfect and subsidiary to circle E. On being cleared
this cist contained nothing worth recording.
Looking from above.
Side View.
E.—THE URN DISCOVERED IN CENTRAL CIST.
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1 i? 7 oe 7
i . -
»
F.—-CIST AND SOUTHERN CIRCLE.
a
is
Te
G.—CIST AND NORTHERN CIRCLE,
esate
pasar saree
>
:
Sar ae te
ve
1912.] DISCOVERY OF A CIST. 407
The clearing of the enclosure was carried on, and as
anticipated it completely encircled the central cist in an
irregular ellipse. The stones were fairly regular, some gaps
however occurring, but at H the stones were of much greater
size than elsewhere in the line, and this was found to be
the case until the original circle A was reached. As on
the opposite side, in the angle formed by the circle A and the
enclosure, was a confused mass of smaller stones, and this on
being cleared was found to be a part of another circle partly
of dry walling, partly of boulders as in other parts, subsidiary
to circle A, with a single cist in it, 2ft. 5in. (67'5em.) long x
1ft. (30cem.) wide, formed as in the other double cist of two
side stones set on edge, with two end stones fitted in between
the side stones, and also on edge. A large flat stone lying
a or Ott, (1° 50m.-2m. ) away, might have formed the covering
stone to this cist (see letter I on plan and illustration G).
On being cleared this cist only contained a sherd of the
same type of pottery found on the rest of ths site.
The clearing of the enclosure and the cists being now
completed, all excavations were filled up to a uniform level,
which was about half way up the component stones of the
enclosure, or about 1ft. (80cm.) above the underlying beach.
In this way the stones will not be lable to displacement
by traffic, and will not be so deeply buried as to preclude
any further measurements or examination of them. In addi-
tion, any stones which were not fast were made secure from
moving. Most of the stones, from having been so long buried
in the peaty mould, are stained, but the bleaching action
of the sun, wind and rain will soon restore their colour,
and when the grass has grown over the site the general plan
and disposition of the stones will be quite clear.
408 DISCOVERY OF A CIST.
Notes.
OBSERVATIONS ON THE ARRANGEMENTS OF THE
COMPONENT STONES OF THE VARIOUS PARTS.
(1) THe EncLosvure.—A glance at the plan will show
that it is in different sections or compartments. Thus the
circle A is self contained and this is also the case with
circle K. Take either of these away and a gap in the general
line of the enclosure results. This points to their having
been in place before the construction of the main enclosure
took place. Take again the smaller enclosures containing
the cists; each was an appendage to its particular enclosure.
They can be removed from the general plan without inter-
fering with their own circles A and E, but their removal
would cut into the larger enclosure.
(2) THe Crenrrat Cist.—The stones of which it is
composed have been obviously selected with care. The two
top flat surfaces of the lower supporting stones are almost
level, not only in themselves, but also to one another, and are
also as nearly as possible parallel with one another. The
Eastern closing stone is a very excellent fit and, in most parts,
it is almost a hair joint. But no marks of tooling or working
are evident.
(3) THe SMALLER Cists.—The walls of these are set
truly and are nearly parallel with one another.
ORIENTATION.—The orientation of the central and the
smaller cists is similar.
H.—GENERAL VIEW OF CIRCLE AND CIST FROM S.W. BEFORE EXCAVATION
WAS COMPLETED.
Sie:
1.—GENERAL VIEW OF CIRCLE AND CIST FROM N. AFTER COMPLETION OF
EXCAVATION.
i
( i
2
nad
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Sine ee se meh rwedos mye ce ta wise So Sl eras
sf
fener ets
may
1912.]
DISCOVERY OF
A CIST. 409
oe ONS OF THE L ISLET DISCOVERY WITH
GUERNSEY DOLMENS.
Certain divergences in details are noticeable between this
and the dolmens hitherto found in Guernsey and the Channel
Islands.
GUERNSEY DOLMENS.
I.—The capstones have their
longer axis North and South
and are laid transversely to the
length of the structure.
IJ.—The props are three or
more to each capstone and are
always in the form of a menhir,
set on their ends.
Ili.—The props are always
buried in the ground and rest
on the underlying rock.
LISLET DISCOVERY.
I.—The covering stone has
its longer axis Kast and West
and is laid the long way of the
Cist.
II.—The supports of the
covering stone are on their
sides and are only two in
number.
III.—The supporting stones
are placed with very little if
any excavation on the beach.
N.B.--There is a dolmen at Herm on the beach, but the props are
buried as in the other dolmens.
IV.—The enclosing stones
have always a form of a circle.
V.—The enclosing circles had
no attached monuments.
VI.—Enormous banks of
limpet shells surround each
dolmen. At Du Tus, the bank
was 3 or 4 ft. thick.
VII.—The Entrance to all
the Dolmens is to the East.
VIII.—All Dolmens have
some sort of paving to the
chamber.
IV.—The enclosure is irre-
gular, has no definite form ; if
it has any particular shape, it
is an irregular ellipse.
V.—Adjoining the enclosure
are two smaller enclosures, each
with another enclosure having
one or more cists in each.
VI.—Only sporadic limpet
shells were found.
Vil.—The Entrance lies to
the West.
VIII.—The chamber bore no
signs of having been paved.
410 DISCOVERY OF A CIST.
THE POTTERY (see illustrations A and E).
The nearly perfect urn (illustration EZ) found in the
recess at the entrance of the chamber has already been
described. It resembles very nearly in shape the cinerary
urn found at Clahar Garden, Mullion, Cornwall, illustrated in
Abercromby’s Study of the Bronze Age Pottery of Great
Britain and Ireland, Vol II., Plate XCI., fig. 429a, except
that the latter has no “mamelon” between the handles. <A
similar arrangement of handles and mamelons is however
shown on another urn of slightly different shape from
Melbourne, St. Andrews, Dorset, see figure 456k, Plate
XCIII. of the work quoted above.
On examination of the fragments of pottery found in the
interior of the cist, it was found that enough pieces could be
put together of several urns to give a fair idea of their size
and shape. The largest number of pieces belonged to a
flower-pot shaped urn (illustration A, figs. 1, 4 and 8), with a
curved over rim, of dark brownish grey colour, burnished
outside and ornamented with a narrow raised band running
round the neck, 14 inches below the rim. This was about
52 inches (30cm.) in diameter at the mouth, and was probably
about 64 to 7 inches (31-33cm.) in height and had a flat base,
resembling fig. 416, Plate LX X XIX., in the above-mentioned
work, except that the raised band on the latter is ornamented
and the rim is not so much curved over. Another urn (figs.
2 and 3) was of a light greyish red colour, burnished and of
rather thicker paste than the last, but smaller and of less
diameter. Another urn was of very coarse and thick red
pottery, but the fragments were too small and worn at the
edges to allow them to be put together to determine its shape.
Fig. 5 is of the fragments of the urn discovered in the first
excavated circle, that tothe N. They are of a coarse neo-
lithic pottery, of a dark brown colour, ornamented with a lug
or mamelon 14 inches (3°25 cm.) below the rim and had evi-
dently formed part of a flower-pot shaped vase. Fig. 6
was of an urn of thick brown paste with a straight rim.
Probably a fragment with a raised band of the same paste
belonged to this urn, and possibly it was also of flower pot
shape. Fig. 7 belongs to an urn of fine texture, burnished,
grayish black in colour, but only the rim was found, and as
the neck curved outwards gradually from a straight rim it
was probably of globular shape. It is to be noted that no
traces of beakers or caliciform urns were found, though many
specimens of these urns have been found in Guernsey dolmens.
‘
_ INCH ra! Lisi] ids
Stein In CLUE - CENTIM: t '
Sint Son nloments from nd HE Wh
L.—FLINT IMPLEMENTS FOUND.
K.—CENTRAL CiST FROM W.
1912. | DISCOVERY OF A CIST. 411
FLINT IMPLEMENTS (see illustration L).
Many flint flakes were found at various depths in the
soil surrounding the cist, but for the most part they were dis-
carded flakes chipped off in the manufacture of implements.
A few small implements such as scrapers, saws, points and
burins, were found both in the interior of the chamber and in
the surrounding soil of the enclosures, in the former chiefly in
the lower 4inch (10cm.) layer of soil above the layer of yellow
clay.
NOTES ON THE GEOLOGICAL CHANGES WHICH HAVE
OCCURRED SINCE THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE
STRUCTURE. (By Mr. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.)
1.—The structure in all its detail is placed upon the
fairly flat top of a raised beach.
The raised beach belongs to the series for which the
mean elevation above O.D. of 25 feet has been adopted.* It
is a beach of large extent and composed of fairly large peb-
bles. The pebbles are not cemented, but are very much
decomposed, the softer rocks being represented by pebbles
which have become disintegrated.
There evidently has been an absence of cementing mate-
rial overlying the beach at this spot, for in other places,
underlying head, the beach is found conglomerated. The
absence of high land in the immediate neighbourhood con-
firms the opinion, so that it is possible and even probable that
the beach has never been covered by deposit other than
eolian, in which wild plants have grown to such an extent
that four feet of black vegetable mould covers the beach at
its south and west margins, and everywhere this mould has
penetrated the beach itself, so that instead of having a yellow
colour, as is found in other places, due to oxidised iron, the
stones and gravel of the beach are black.
2.—The beach appears to be of less depth under the
structure than on the west and south sides of the deposit,
where there is evidence of a thickness of pebbles of eight
feet ; this is owing to the beach material having been driven
by storms to the lower levels on the south and west sides.
When the structure was erected the foundation stones
were placed, not on, but in the beach, and the black earth and
blackened pebbles disturbed have been found around the
* The raised beach in question varies in detail just as does the present sea-level-
beach, but there is no reason to suppose that the mean level of the L’Islet raised
beach is unusual.
412 DISCOVERY OF A GIST.
constructions practically where they were thrown by the con-
structors except for one thing. There is evidence that they
have been washed into cavities between the stones and into
the graves.
The black mould is of considerable depth in the gardens
behind the low stone wall on the West, and the levels show
that the blown sand, which must have covered these gardens,
has been removed until the black earth was reached.
This black mould covered the whole of the ancient beach,
tor openings made on the South, East and North all proved
that the pebbles were black and the interstices were permeated.
by the black vegetable mould.
This black mould was very visible on the floor of
the first circle and attracted the attention of the workers.
Later on the earth which covered the small grave on the
North side was found to be black, and a quantity of black
material formed a thick layer of horizontal structure which
looked so much lke burnt bone that the workmen were
directed to cease work on that spot so that its nature might
be determined.
It was found to be vegetable humus, or rather it was a
partly decomposed vegetable mould with both humus and
fragments of plants. “The portions of plants had retained
their woody structure and their carbonaceous character because
they were protected from oxidation by a layer of compact
clay.
: This black earth was therefore on the site before and
when the stones were erected.
We have no evidence at all that the dolmen build-
ers covered their structure with a mound of earth. This
was usual, at all events for late structures, but the mound
we found over these stones was not placed there by man.
The evidence is all against that theory.
The constitution of the mound was as follows :—
3.—(1st) The lowest level was largely composed of the
black earth and blackened pebbles belonging to the beach.
These were also found within the. enclosures and graves.
A small remnant has been left in position by the excavators.
(2nd) Superimposed on this black layer was a mound of clay
and decomposed gravelly deposit of varying thickness but
averaging 5 feet. This began above the level of the tops of
the smaller graves and filled up the dolmen and was rain-
washed into a more or less conical hill. This clay mixture
was stratified everywhere with horizontal strata, interlined
with black vegetable lines—just as is the sandy deposit at
12. | DISCOVERY OF A CIST. 413
L’Ancresse. These lines are lines of interruption when the
clay deposit was arrested and vegetation grew undisturbed,
The clay deposit was not confined to the mound proper
but thinned out to smaller layers to the N. and S., and at
considerable distances from the dolmen the neighbourhood
showed the same layering and stratification.
The black mould may be associated with the submerged
forest period in its last phase. The conditions under which
it was formed were altogether different from the present ones
for the sea had not yet broken in the Braye.
Whether that had occurred before the dolmen builders
erected their structure or not cannot be said, but it is probable
that the coast line was still outside the last barrier in Grande
Havre before the inundation of the Braye at the time they
chose the spot, for it seems unlikely that they would have
chosen a spot the foot of which was being washed by the sea.
The dolmen builders therefore saw no sea in the imme-
diate neighbourhood of their mound, but not long after this
time the barriers in Grande Havre were broken through by
the joint action of the sea and the advance of sea level, and
the sea entered into the low lands of the Braye du Valle.
At first this would not influence the spot, but in course of
time the insular position of the low hill was developed, and
the sea at high tide lapped the base of the hill very nearly in
the positions of the present roads.
When the present sea level was reached, Grande Havre
was practically open sea, and the Braye du Valle was swept
by storm waves.
These storm waves, when they occurred coincident with
spring tides, swept over the mound on which the dolmen
stands and washed away everything except the stones. But
the stones of the alignment of the circles, the smaller cap
stone of the minor graves and the closing slab of the dolmen
were displaced and the bones were washed out. The smaller
graves and the bottom of the larger one received the mould-
earth and blackened stones lying about from the building
operations.
Clay was torn up from the lower levels of the old beach
and washed up, forming slowly and gradually a kind of upper
head of very much larger area than found during our excava-
tion. Much of this was rain-washed into the central dolmen.
Some cessation of the action occurred, during which the
mound of clay was reduced in size by rain-wash, the mega-
lithic structure acting as a stop and an oval-topped mound
resulted. This in its turn was covered by blown sand, and in
our day this was overgrown by wild plants.
414 DISCOVERY OF A CIST.
4.—Thus is accounted for, the fact that the tombs had
been emptied, the stones disturbed and moved, all before the
formation of the mound, the horizontal layering and the clean
section of the horizontal layers.
The gravel, which has disappeared from under the beach
on the East side, is at present 7 sétu in the wells on the South
and West sides; hence it may be inferred that the storm waves
beat in from the N.W. and W., in other words through
Grande Havre—where they met those reflected from the Folie
hill—and rushed up the dolmen hill.
5.—There is a valuable item of evidence which must not
be lost sight of.
The urn has been emptied as described, and was found
to contain clay-mould. Between the clay and the inner
surface of the urn we found a network of fibrous root.
We have tried to get the roots named but so far without
success ; the roots are fibrous and have all the characteristics
of ivy. When the plant grew in the pot or urn there must
have been clay or soil, the urn must have been in contact
with air and moisture, hence the growth occurred before the
deposit of the clay of the mound.
The excavations were carried out from first to last under
the superintendence of Lt.-Col. T. W. M. de Guérin, the
President of the Guernsey Society of Natural Science and
Local Research, who interested himself specially with the
account of the pottery and flint implements ; of the late Rev.
G. I. Lee, M.A., Rector of St. Peter-Port, and local Secretary
of the Society of Antiquaries, whose sudden and much
regretted death during the time of the excavations deprived
the Society of a most valued worker in every matter archeo-
logical and also of the report on this discovery which he was
preparing at the time of his death; of Mr. A. Collenette,
F.C.8., who is responsible for the geological account and
aaielra ane: ; of Mr. 8. C. Curtis, who “undertoolc the mieqenge!
ments and general account; and of Mr, A. Le Tissier, of St.
Magloire, ‘who supervised the actual excavation. He had
interested himself previously in the local antiquities, and it
was felt that nothing of any interest would be missed by him.
Mr. 8S. Falla, of the Vale, was the one to originally call
attention to the stones first described, and Mr. J. 8. Hocart
reported the fact.to the Society.
PN en i ee
THE RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY FOR THE
YEAR 1912.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
O
AGAIN we have passed through a year much wetter than the
average. .
The year 1910 totalled 46°"16, 1911 fell to 37°"11, and
this year is again up to and over 46 inches. We have had
three wet years in succession after 5 dry years.
The total for the year exceeds the average of 70 years
by 9°89 inches. The fall 46°57 has been exceeded in the 70
years four times only, viz. :—
in.
Be Nit Sos oielh oinkell als yaialala vnie biota d 48°01
ME ee eR eee BER og dialer et Mlp'dwoinicca wine 49°13
Bee eee ye Ste oo dts hice bol atth s atiasigiviits's' 48°04
Rei ee Peis ie ce manablzie debs widinves'oi 56°96
The total over 40” are more numerous.
One effect of the excess has been to raise the average
from 36°°43 to 36°°62. In the comparisons given in this
paper the latter figure is used.
Seven months of the year were wetter than their
averages, and one of, these made a record, for August's
rainfall totalled over 8” which was 2” in excess of its previous
highest quantity. August exceeded its average by 5°56
which is a very large excess.
Of the dry months April was the driest and narrowly
escaped being without rain at all, having less than a
quarter of an inch as a total. This was also a record.
No fewer than eight of the twelve months gave 20, and
over, wet days, these eight months contributing together 188
out of the 236 wet days of the year. The wet days have
exceeded the average by 55. The wetness of the year is well
illustrated by the fact that nearly two out of three days were
wet. |
The wet months contributed 75% of the year’s total.
These months usually yield 37% only, hence we see that the
rain has fallen in greater quantity in the drier months of the
average year.
The difference between the wettest station, which this
year proves to be the Grange, and the driest, is 10°38.
G
416 RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
Counting the three wettest stations, viz.: St. Martin’s-
road, The Grange and Rohais, as 100, then the south of the
island had a rainfall of 97%; the west, 86%; the north, 79% ;
the south-west from 86% to 90%. L’Ancresse had 198 wet
days only ; Mont Saint still fewer with 194, but all the other
stations were in excess of 200 and the average of all stations
was 220.
As was to be expected the droughts are but two in
number instead of, as last year, four. |
The partial droughts are also two, last year yielding
three. Heavy falls have been numerous, the wettest stations
yielding seven falls of one inch and over, but L’Ancresse had
one fall only of over 1 inch.
The island as a whole received 43” which is 10° more
than the established average.
Mr. Catford has been taking the rainfall at the Platte
Fougére lighthouse and has obtained a total of 17°76 or 487%
of the fall at Fort Doyle. This also represented only 367%
of the fall at St. Martin’s. It is thus shown that the rainfall
induced by the rise of the land is exhausted by the time the
rain bearing air reaches the N.E. point of land.
TABLE I.
iRAINFALL AT ST. MARTIN’S ROAD, 1912. Inches.
Rainfall. Previous Geentose Proportion
ide h’ Wet
| Heconde: fallin one at oe mone s Desk.
| Monthly Ts. Monthly Ts. day. year’s total.
Months es : ee 3 ;
e. | os oe this v7
| ge | aaSe) ¢ | g | & nts =
| 192, 55 Bas 5 Ft : e g a Seale §
Raq |7° i 4 < g &
January ..| 3°46 | 3°74 | —0°28 | 7:90 | 0°79 | 0-71 | 6th TA | Ws eT)
February... 2°86 | 2°63 | 4+0°23 | 6°19 | 0°08 | 0°46 | 7th 6°2 72 | 26) 16
March ....| 6°17 | 2°59 | +3°58 | 6 44 | 0:34 | 0°69 | 20th | 13° 72 | 27) 16
April | 0°22*| 2°30 | —2°08 | 5°13 | 0°23 | 0°04 | 5th 0°5 6°3 9| 14
Mayr ees 1:01 | 2°08 | —1:07 | 4°64 | 0°02 | 0°23 | 6th 2°5.| bo") TL) a
June 3°90 | 2:08 1°82 | 5°03 | 0°43 |-1:01)| Qnd)| Hse 5°o | 20] 11
July: )....| 0°67) 2584 1°53 | 6°58 | 0°12 | 1°04 | 27th 78 5°8 | 20; 11
August ..| 8°02*| 2°46 | +5°56 | 6°01 | 0°33 | 1°32 | 12th | 17°2 6°8 | 27] 12
September| 3°00 | 3°03 | —0-03 | 9°39 | 0-25 | 1:39 | 29th | 63] 82) 11) 14
October ..| 5°41 | 5°02 | +0°39 |11°04 | 1°92 | 0°95 | 20th | 11°6 | 18°5 | 20) 19
November | 3°79 | 4°47 | —0°68 | 9°08 | 0°88 | 0°85 | 28th 8:0 | 1271 | 20; 19
December | 5:00 | 4°18 | +0°82 |11°47 | 0°80 | 0°56 | 25th | 10°6 | 11°4 | 28) 19
The Year. .| 46°51 |36°62 | + 9°89 |56°96 |25°04 | 1:39 |Sep 29/100°0 |100°0 | 236 | 181
* New record,
1912.)
RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE II.
DISTRIBUTION OF RAINFALL OVER THE ISLAND.—1912.
417
North.| South-West. | Island
South & South East. East. West.
Pek |. ce Miao
¢ BRB. = 5 &
SS 6 eo eel) CEM ears 3 a
= 6S —Q Ss sf x 5 fc} » a) +
ie a qf }ood | oe = : A
D ro) oe 2 (=) » c,
& - 3 = ce
oO
' abi so in. in. in. in. ie in. in. in.
January ....| 3°46 | 3°31 | 3°42 | 3°37 | 3°59 | 3°18 | 3°35 | 2°80
February....| 2°86 | 2°69 | 2°66 | 293 | 3-01 | 2°64 2:90 | 2:15
tare... © L7 | 6.08 | 6°09 | 6:23 | 6°29 | 5°20 | 5:46 | 4°77
April cic. 0°22 | 0°26 | 0°23 | 0:19 | 0°15 | 0°08 | 0°17 | 0°14
Diayaedece | 2: OF | E12 | 0°99 | 6:95 | 0°95 | 0°69 | 0°69 | 0°80
PUNE wv... 3°90 | 3°98 | 4:14 | 3°42 | 3°46 | 3°10 | 3°14 | 2°88
Jo) nr 3°67 | 3°76 | 3°74 | 3:90 | 3°61 | 2°87 | 3°20 | 3°12
August ....| 8°02 | 7°43 | 7°32 | 6°93 | 7:37 | 6°67 | 6°83 | 6-40
September ..| 3°00 | 3°16 | 3°01 | 2°85 | 3°25 | 2°83 | 3:19 | 2°15
October ....| 5°41 | 5°44 | 5°30 | 5:60 | 5°79 | 4°83 | 4°89 | 4:93
November...| 3°79 | 4°08 | 3°5 3°58 | 3°52 | 3°65 | 3°45 | 2°76
December...| 5°00 | 4°24 | 4°50 | 5:00 | 5:21 | 4°16 | 4°37 | 3.85
The Year...| 46°51 | 45°58 | 44°72 | 47°13 | 46°77 | 89°89 | 41°38 | 36°75
Comparisons} 100 98 96 101 | 100 86 86 79
Wet Days...| 236 | 237 | 228 | 220 | 214 | 191 | 233 | 198
s ,;
2 fa : : 6 2 iy
Sl Eat sha eee Mes al tem hea ie
Observers...| ° is ie a = So a S
ml fo) oH .
SRO csc. |S wl gh SO
<q | A Bet SR wm, 2 |
H H S ; 4 H is H
eee ch ye yer. acca Ola
Les Héches,
St. Peter-in-the-
Wood
bdow,e,.
> He >
cD
to
iwer)
oc
me Oo 1
ONwoww roo :
Sonwouw a
we
Te
ve}
Villiaze, Forest.
—o
=
2°97
Means of all
Stations
41°90 | 40°14 | 43°07
Mr. F. Lilley.
Waterworks Co.
— se
418 RAINFALL OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE III.
PREVIOUS YEARS OF LOWEST RAINFALL WITH THE 5 YEARS
BEFORE AND AFTER THE MINIMA.
In. | 1853 | 1854 | 1855 | 1856 | 1857 | 1858 || 1859 | 1860 | 1861 | 1862 | 1863
56 |
ie 48°04
a | 43°41
34°98 | | 34°47
‘99 | 32°50
9-99 |-20°42'|30°86 |» > 81°22 “
26
ee | ieee 25°08 Bato)
In. | 1865 | 1866 | 1867 | 1868 | 1869 1870 | 1871 | 1872 | 1873 | 1874 | 1875
56} | | 56°96
46
36 37-07 | | 36-26 37°72 | . aq | 36°28
34-76 | | 35°38
| 32°99 |
a Ses | | 27-05
In.} 1903 | 1904 | 1905 | 1906 | 1907 | 1908 | 1909 | 1910 | 1911 | 1912
56 | | |
46 | | 46°16 46°51
40°88
ne 37°72 87°11
| (3412 | 33.43 | 34°00 | 34:00
26 | | | 26-22
419
GUERNSEY.
OF
RAINFALL
1912.)
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THE SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY FOR THE
YEAR 1912.
BY MR. A. COLLENETTE, F.C.S.
—_— () ————
WE have just experienced the gloomiest year on record.
The year has yielded 1,704 hours. The previous record was
1,724 hours in 1894. Last year, being over 2,000 hours,
increased the average from 1,912 to 1,923 hours, but 1912 has
been calamitous and the average is now reduced to 1,905 hours.
Only one record has been made, October had 3 hours
more sunshine than its previous highest.
The falling off in monthly totals were chiefly in July and
August which had totals of practically 100 hours each below
their averages. These deficits practically decided the
character of the year.
Instead of the year yielding 45% of the possible sunshine
the proportion was only 38%.
As regards the monthly totals, May to August inclusive
should have yielded over 50% of the possible, but this year
only May came up to this standard.
SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY.
TABLE I.
DURATION OF SUNSHINE AND
Campbell-Stokes
SUNSHINE.
Percentages Mean Daily
| Monthly Totals. | Nearest Hours. oe tae Range.
AMOntHe. ossible.
n B 6 : 5 : rn & g : ‘ww
5&0 ae 25 @ Pe 8 fp
1912. iS S a S g 5 1912.) 5 5 3 S| 1912. | 28
oe A Yo} Oe o > | “one o>
ae an eS mt = md
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
January .... 58 59 82 28 | 21) °22 1°80 |7 1°8 19
February 31 84 119 45 | 27 | 28 | 40] 2°5 2°9
Mareh. 33.6 113 145 228 84 | 31 | 39 | 62 7| 36 A'7
April. 3... :s 248 199 261 129 | 60 | 49 | 68 | 8:0 6°4
MBY |}. Coxe 260 251 309 181 | 55 | 58 | 72 | Sra 81
JUNE: ws siass 231 247 314 192 | 48 | 51 | 65 | 7:6 8°2
ay eee cs Lil 270 382 187 = 4°35. 4:0)2k We es 8°7
August 139 239 326 186 | 31°) 54.) 74
September .. 157 187 269 107 | 41) 49) 721 Bee 6°2
October .... 157* 109 157 85 | 47 | 838 | 47 | 50 3°6
November .. AT 69 113 40 | 17 | 25| 42 ies 2°3
December .. 44 46 Ht 18°") 17 | 18 28 ee 15
The Year 1704* | 1905 2215 1724 | 38 | 43 | 50] 4:6 5°2
Highest .... 260 270 1899
Lowest 44 46 1894
* New Record.
1912.]
SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY.
423
TABLE I.
PREVALENCE OF CLOUD.
Instrument.
SUNSHINE. Sunniest Days. CLOUD.
Sunless
Days.
Proportion
of the 1912. ro 0 to 10.
Year’s Total. 5
Differences , S
goo Fe
Seiad g Stale : d
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f Fa A ty = ay. o 1912, Me
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— 1 3°4 31 14 10 8°5 | 28th 8°5 Ti 6°6
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— 32 6°6 76 2 1 Ii:2 | 30th’) 11-8 6°7 4°5
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+ 9 | 15-3 | 138°] 1 1 1a 28th | tang o’4 4°5
— 16 | 13°6 .| 13°0 0 1 14°6 | 22nd | 15°6 5°2 4°9
— 99 | 10-1 14°2 1 0 12°> | 16th | 15:5 TA 4°6
— 100 8°2 | 12°6 4 1 10°3 2nd | 13°9 T'4 4°6
— 30 9-1 9°8 1 1 11°3 Ith | 12°4 4°3 4°6
+ 48 9°2 5'8 Z 4 9°6 Sth | 10°8 54 5°9
— 22 ik 3°6 a 7 6°2 | 24th 8°8 8 6°4
— 2 2°5 asia 13 11 5-0 | 8lst | 7:9 6°9 5°8
200 100 100 49 46 14°6 15°6 6°4 5°3
SUNSHINE OF GUERNSEY.
424
TABLE II.
ANNUAL TOTALS OF SUNSHINE IN GUERNSEY, 1894 to 1912.
Hours.
ane AO:
from 1700 to 1800
. from 1800 to 1900
ED WAR on dd oan oo Bi
MGOWESE sce bie ace
1912—1894—1902—1903—1905—1910 ..
1896—1897—1901—1907 ...........
») E9041 908 — L008 esi es olncei rene sres oeatens
a cerehdsl Banoo a6
Ayears ....
from 1900 to 2000
3 years ..
. over 2000
1895—1898—1899—1900—1906—1911 .
LS O De uies otecoteairs lars @ Acme arenes
OOVCATS a. cree ieiets
. 2214
Highest... 3... ..
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